When Swords Cross
by Hurricane Chris
Summary: Seisen no Keifu, Celice x Nanna pairing. In the middle of the war against the Empire, Celice arrives in Lenster and meeds Leaf, Fin, and Nanna. Little does he realize the role the third person will play in his life, both during and after the war...
1. Chapter 1

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Before I begin, I want to explain a few things. First, this is a Celice/Nanna fanfiction. Yes, I understand that it is an uncommon pairing (since Celice is usually paired with Lana and Nanna is usually paired with Leaf), but if all fanfiction were written about popular pairings, things would get boring. So, I am giving you fair warning. If you dislike this pairing, you should stop reading now. I would prefer to not be flamed on my choice of pairings–it has happened to me in the past, and I am not at all anxious for it to happen again.

Secondly, I am using a bit of creative license. This has to be done, at least a little bit for the continent of Jugdral, due to all the player-based decisions, as well as contradictions that were created by Fire Emblem: Thracia 776. First on the list is the parents. Right now, I am going with the recommended pairings for a player's first file (Midir/Aideen, Holyn/Aira, Beowulf/Lachesis, Claude/Sylvia, Levin/Fury, Jamka/Brigid, and Azel/Tiltyu). The second item has to do with Nanna's father. According to Fire Emblem: Seisen no Keifu, Nanna's father is the same as Delmud's father. According to Fire Emblem: Thracia 776, Delmud's father is Beowulf, but Nanna's father is arguably Fin. In this case, I am going with the former–Delmud and Nanna both have the same father. However, these first two should not really affect the story too much. There will be a few other instances of creative license, but you will see those as you go along. The only real significant factor is the way I decide conflict between the two Jugdral-based games. Wherever there is a conflict, the Seisen no Keifu version of events will prevail (as in the example I provided with Nanna's father).

Just keep these things in mind as you read this story. I have one more thing to mention, and that is a disclaimer. I do not own Fire Emblem, nor do I own the characters that are a part of Fire Emblem. I do, however, own any characters I create for the purposes of this story (which, I promise you, will be few).

Now, without further ado, I present to you:

When Swords Cross

CHAPTER ONE

Celice ran as fast as his legs would carry him. Now that Darna was under the Isaacian Liberation Army's control, it was time to rush to the aid of the Kingdom of Lenster. As he ran, he could feel his stomach tightening. It was not merely due to the battle that was to come. He was also anxious about finally meeting the Lenster forces that were fighting the Empire. He had heard things about each of the three surviving fighters. First was the prince and heir to Lenster's throne, Leaf Faris Claus. Leaf's mother, Ethlin, and Celice's father, Sigurd, were siblings, which made Celice and Leaf cousins. However, despite their blood relation, they had never met. Second was Leaf's guardian and a veteran knight of Lenster, Sir Fin. Fin had served for a few years under the command of his father, Sigurd, alongside Prince Cuan, Leaf's father. At the beginning of Sigurd's first campaign, Fin was inexperienced in battles, but he learned at a frightening pace. Three people in the rebel group–Oifaye, Shanan, and Levin–had known Fin through the campaigns with Sigurd, and always spoke highly of him. The third person was Nanna, a young woman who had been raised in Northern Thracia but had lineage to Agustria's noble house of Nodion. However, Nanna was not a member of Nodion's main family. She was the daughter of Lachesis, who was the younger half-sister of the last lord of Nodion, Eltshan. She was also the younger sister of Celice's fellow fighter and childhood friend, Delmud, and the cousin of Aless, Eltshan's son and another fighter who had joined Celice's army, albeit unwillingly.

Eventually, the sands of the vast and treacherous Yied Desert gave way to soil and plant life. Celice knew that this meant that he was on the border of the former kingdom of Alster. All of the members of Alster's royal family had been either executed or imprisoned when the Empire came in. It was now under control of Lord Blume, the head of Grandbell's noble house of Freege, who governed all of Northern Thracia from Castle Alster. He met with no resistance from Imperial troops, but he was not surprised. He had sent Shanan and Arthur ahead of him, and his mounted troops had outrun him, with one exception–whom Celice had spotted running toward him. He called out, "Oifaye!"

Oifaye slowed his horse down as he approached the Imperial Prince. Oifaye, a distant relative of Celice's, had served under Celice's father from the moment Verdane troops invaded southern Grandbell until the disastrous battle in Barhara. He was a tactical genius; he was only 14 when Sigurd fought off Verdane's invasion force. Now, he was in his mid 30s, and had been forced to shoulder tremendous responsibility at a much younger age than most men. Oifaye had not even turned 18 when Sigurd's army was massacred in Barhara; it was up to him and Shanan, who was even younger, to raise the children of some of Sigurd's troops. For the past 17 years, Oifaye and Shanan had raised six children, taught them in the military arts, and protected them from Imperial troops who wanted the son of Sigurd the Hero, and those who sheltered him, dead.

"Your Highness, we are currently engaged in combat with the forces deployed from Alster to retake Lenster," Oifaye reported. "However, we fear that there may be two groups, and we are only fighting one."

"Where does that leave the other group?" Celice asked.

"Well, the thief that Prince Shanan met back at the Yied Shrine–I believe her name is Patty–went into a nearby town and gathered some information. According to what she heard, Lenster's forces are fighting a group a few miles north of here," Oifaye answered.

"Thank you, Oifaye. I think I'd better go join them."

Oifaye gave Celice a perplexed look. "Shouldn't you meet with the main army?"

"From what you told me, it sounds to me like the rest of the troops can handle Alster's troops without my aid," Celice replied. "On the other hand, we only know of three fighters from Lenster who survived the failed charge on Alster."

"I see," Oifaye said. "Yes, Prince Leaf is your cousin. It is only natural that you want to aid a family member. However, I am sure that Fin is more than enough to handle Alster's forces, assuming he has continued to train these past 17 years."

"Oifaye, no matter how skilled Fin is, he's only one man!" Celice responded.

Oifaye sighed. "Very well, I see there's no convincing you. I will return to the battle. May the blessings of the Crusader Baldo be with you."

"And the same to you, Oifaye," Celice replied. He then turned from Oifaye and ran north.

-1-

As Celice ran north, the battle he had heard about was raging. As Oifaye had predicted, Fin was doing most of the fighting, and was capable of holding off Alster's forces, though he attributed at least part of it to the lance that Prince Cuan had given him so long ago. As Alster's forces focused on the veteran knight, Leaf sniped them off with his mother's old Light Sword, a weapon that could cast low-level light magic at a distance. Neither Leaf nor Fin trusted Leaf's abilities to survive direct combat with heavily-armored Alster knights, so this was the only way for Leaf to contribute to the battle and survive at the same time. However, he was not the only person who adopted this strategy. Nanna, who had inherited from her mother a magical sword herself, fought in a similar manner. However, whenever Fin took a direct hit from an enemy, Nanna would ride forward and heal him with her healing staff. This time, though, when Nanna rode out and healed Fin, he spoke to her.

"Nanna, I heard from one of these soldiers that another army is fighting the bulk of the Alster invasion force just south of here. I'm willing to bet that this is the army that liberated Isaac from the Empire's grasp. I need you to ride south and meet with them."

"What? No, I'm not leaving you and Leaf to fend for yourselves!" Nanna exclaimed.

"Nanna, surely you don't doubt my ability to fight so much that you expect to find me dead after such a brief trip!" Fin shouted.

"But . . . " Nanna began to protest, but a shout cut her off.

"Fin is right, Nanna," said Leaf. "Right now, we need more reinforcements. If you stay, all three of us will eventually fall. We need help!"

Nanna bit her lip. "I understand. I'll be back as soon as possible!" With that, she rode south.

-1-

A few minutes after the battle disappeared from her sight, Nanna heard galloping hooves to her left. She looked, hoping to see reinforcements, but gasped in horror when she saw the Freege crest on the side of the horse's saddle. The rider pulled out a bow, and Nanna urged her horse to run faster. She tried to put as much distance between herself and her assailant as possible, but the arch knight had begun to tail her. She heard the faint "twang" of a bowstring and had her horse veer left. The arrow missed her right arm by mere inches. She turned slightly to get a look at her attacker, drew her Earth Sword, and had it cast its Resire magic. However, the enemy knight managed to dodge the spell, and readied another arrow. Nanna tried to avoid the second arrow, but shouted in pain as it embedded itself in her right leg. She was about to turn around to attempt to cast her sword's magic again when she noticed a figure running in her direction. This time, however, she noticed a crest with the holy sword, Tyrfing, in it on the runner's armor, and knew that this person was an ally. "Hang on, I'll help!" he shouted as he ran toward Nanna and her pursuer. "Run past me! I'll handle the enemy!" Nanna complied, and the fighter stood between her and the arch knight. However, the arch knight also ran past the other person, determined to stop Nanna from getting reinforcements. Then, the other fighter shouted.

"Hey, you! Freege knight! Leave the girl alone!"

"Why should I listen to you when I have a mission to accomplish?!" the arch knight shouted.

"Because my name is Celice Baldos Chalphy!" the fighter shouted. This got the arch knight's full attention. He brought his horse around to bear at Celice. "You see this?" He pointed to the crest on his armor. "This is the crest of a member of House Chalphy."

The arch knight began to laugh. "This is my lucky day!" he shouted. "Not only do we see the fall of Lenster once again, but I will be able to personally deliver the head of the son of Sigurd the Traitor to Emperor Alvis!" With that, he drew an arrow from his quiver and fired it. Celice, however, was too far away for the arrow to do any good, and dodging it required minimal effort. Celice then charged toward his enemy, dodging another arrow as he ran. However, the enemy was not an idiot. He ordered his horse to move, and was able to keep a safe distance between himself and the Imperial Prince.

Celice, seeing that trying to pursue the opponent was futile, decided that he would need to change tactics. When he had been running to meet Lenster's forces, he had been running along the edge of some small woods. He knew that he was going to have to lure the enemy in to the point that Celice could attack with his sword, and he also knew that he would need cover in order to do so. Acting as if he had lost the will to fight, Celice sprinted into the woods. He followed the path in for a few hundred feet, then ran off the path and situated himself behind a particularly large oak. After a moment, he heard the sound of hooves hitting the dirt nearby. He heard the knight mutter, "Now where did that brat run off to . . . ?" and took that as his cue to strike.

Celice turned around and leaped out from behind the tree. However, the enemy's reflexes were quick, and he was able to get a shot off with his bow. Celice tried to dodge, but to no avail–he screamed in pain as the arrow lodged itself in his lower-left abdomen. Despite this, he still was able to leap toward his enemy and thrust his sword forward. A few seconds later, he dislodged the blade from the man's chest, and watched him fall from his horse's saddle. The horse, realizing that its rider was on his deathbed, galloped out of the woods.

The pain from his wound struck Celice hard as his adrenaline slowed. Through the pain, Celice bowed his head to the latest casualty of war. Despite leading an army, Celice detested killing. However, he knew he had to if Jugdral were ever to be free again. Clutching the area around the arrow, which, for fear of blood loss, he left in his body, he began to make his way out of the woods. As he did so, however, he heard more hooves.

Nanna slowed her horse as she approached the injured Celice. She dismounted as soon as the horse came to a stop, but was very careful to put most of her weight on her uninjured leg. Seeing that she was injured, Celice protested. "No, stay on your horse. You're injured, too."

"I can handle it," Nanna replied. "However, your injury needs immediate attention." She gestured to the Heal staff in her hand. "My magic isn't terribly strong, I'm afraid, but I should be able to heal your wound. Just hold still."

Nanna limped over to where Celice stood. Clenching his teeth, Celice moved his arms away from his lower chest and stood up straight. Nanna bent down so that she was eye-level with the arrow. "I'm sorry, but this is probably going to hurt." With one swift motion, she yanked the arrow out. Celice shouted in pain, though it was nothing compared to the pain he had felt when the arrow first entered his abdomen. Blood began to flow from the open wound, but Nanna pulled out a strip of cloth and pressed it to the wound. She then took her staff and touched it to the area of the cloth where the wound was, and muttered a soft, short incantation. Immediately, the bleeding stopped and the wound closed. Nanna then took the cloth, pulled out a sword, and cut off the part with Celice's blood. She then tried to get up, but as she put too much weight on her injured leg, shrieked in pain and fell toward the ground. Thankfully, Celice was there to catch her. He then set her on the ground, and asked her to lay her right leg on its side. She complied, and Celice knelt down in front of her leg.

As he inspected the wound, Celice said, "Unlike you, I lack healing powers, but I do have some medicine and bandages for wounds on me." He then reached into a small sack strapped to his belt and pulled out a paste. He swiftly pulled out the arrow (Nanna shouted in pain) and applied the paste. This time, Nanna hissed as the paste stung her wound. "Sorry, the paste stings a bit, but it'll keep the wound clean and help the blood coagulate." He then pulled out a strip of cloth himself and wrapped it tightly around Nanna's leg. He finished it off by tying it, with the knot right in front of her shin. "There. You should probably keep off it for a while longer, but it won't get infected, nor will it leave a scar." He then grabbed the roll of cloth, which he had sat next to him, and found himself looking at an awkward sight. Due to the fact that Nanna's legs weren't together, he could see a little way up her skirt.

The next thing Celice knew, he heard someone shout "YEEEEK!" and felt something smack him across the face. The blow came with so much force that Celice was knocked sideways. As soon as he realized what happened, his face turned beet-red. He sat up and exclaimed, "I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to, I swear! It was an accident, I tell you! You have to believe me!"

Nanna looked at Celice as he apologized. With the amount of apologizing Celice was doing, she had a hard time not believing him. "Actually, I think I should apologize. You did treat my wound, after all. That was just a reflex action. And it really doesn't do for me to hit the leader of the rebellion."

The red left Celice's face, which made the red handprint on his left cheek all the more visible. "That was your sword arm, wasn't it?" Celice asked, gingerly rubbing his cheek. Nanna nodded. "So, it seems you know who I am. Now, who are you?"

Nanna gasped. She had gotten so preoccupied with the Freege knight that she had forgotten about her objective. "We don't have much time! We need to get north as soon as possible!" She quickly climbed her horse. "Come on, we'll save time if you ride with me."

"All right, but who are you?" Celice asked as he climbed up behind Nanna.

"My name is Nanna. I'm with the Lenster forces just north of here," Nanna replied.

"Ah, now everything's making sense," Celice said. "Well then, please, take me to Leaf as soon as possible."

"That's my plan, but . . . " Nanna bit her lip. "With all due respect, Prince Celice, Prince Leaf and Sir Fin are fighting an entire group of Alster troops on their own. They sent me for reinforcements. I mean you no offense, but shouldn't we find more troops? I don't think one more will add to our success rate."

"No offense taken, Nanna," Celice responded. "However, I should be enough to help you win. In addition to the sword my father left me, a thief named Patty gave me a Hero Sword in the Yied Desert. With either one of those swords in my hands, I should prove more than a match for any armor knight Alster sends my way. I know that neither is the holy sword Tyrfing, but . . . "

"All right, if you say so, I'll put my faith in you, Prince," Nanna said. She then ordered her horse to run north.

-1-

"Is that the last of your wounds, Sir Fin?"

Fin nodded. "Yes. Thank you, Nanna." He then looked at Celice. "And I owe you much thanks as well, Prince."

"I couldn't let you die, could I?" Celice remarked. "I'm going to need all the help I can get, and the fewer deaths, the better."

"Prince Celice . . . " Leaf began, but Celice held up his hand to cut him off.

"We're cousins, aren't we? Then let's drop the formalities unless we're in court."

"As you wish, Pr–I mean, Celice," Leaf replied. "Anyway, I wanted to know where the remainder of your troops are."

"Well, according to Oifaye's report, they were fighting the bulk of Alster's forces, and were preparing to advance on the castle," Celice answered. "And speak of the devil, here he comes now!"

Sure enough, Oifaye rode toward the spot where the four warriors rested. He came to a stop before Celice. "Your Highness, I am glad to report that the castle is completely surrounded and Lord Aless engaged Lord Blume."

"So does that mean Blume is dead?" Celice asked.

"Unfortunately, no, Lord Blume escaped," Oifaye answered. "He was last seen fleeing east. I believe he may be heading for Conote."

"Thanks, Oifaye. I'll be there as soon as I can."

Oifaye turned around to ride back, but was stopped by a voice. "Sir Oifaye, did you mention the name Aless?" Nanna asked.

Oifaye turned to Nanna. "You must be Lady Nanna, then. Yes, Lord Aless is among our ranks. However . . . "

"However?" Nanna repeated. This time, she was answered by Celice.

"I'm afraid Aless wishes to exact revenge on me."

"Why is that?" Nanna asked.

Celice sighed. "He believes that his father died by my father's hand. No amount of persuasion has managed to convince him otherwise. Not even the word of Oifaye, Prince Shanan, and Levin, all of whom were present at that battle and know that Lord Eltshan had been wrongfully accused of treason and beheaded by the late King Shagaal, was enough to convince him."

"I can take care of that," Nanna stated. "My mother left in my possession a letter that my uncle Eltshan wrote for my cousin about that incident. I would imagine that his word is more than enough for him."

"Very well, then, you may present Lord Eltshan's letter once you see Lord Aless," Oifaye replied. He then turned to Celice. "Your Highness, I pardon for being so forward, but I think we would make better time if you were to ride along with me."

"I couldn't agree more with you, Oifaye," replied Celice. With that, he mounted Oifaye's horse, sat behind the veteran knight, and rode as the horse took off at full speed toward Alster Castle.


	2. Chapter 2

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Fire Emblem, nor do I own the characters in Fire Emblem. I do, however, own any characters I create for the purpose of this story.

When Swords Cross

CHAPTER TWO

Celice lay awake in bed. The battle for Alster had concluded earlier that day, and the remainder of the day was used to give the troops a rest. Despite the fact that it was past midnight, however, Celice found himself unable to sleep. Ever since his rebellion had taken action back in northern Isaac, he had had trouble sleeping. Every night, he found himself unable to stop thinking about the days to come and the fights that would ensue, and would wonder how many more people would have to be sacrificed in order to restore things back to the way they were before the Empire came into being. He had just absorbed troops from Lenster, as well as some Alster knights who had been forced into Blume's service, which meant that while his army's strength was increased, there were also more people for whom he needed to look out. On this night, though, his thoughts drifted from the war at hand to his parents.

His mother, Deirdre, had disappeared when Celice was still a baby. As a result, he could not even remember what she looked like. The only thing he remembered about her was a lullaby, and he was fairly sure that that was because she had passed it on to both his father and Aideen. He now knew what had happened to his mother. Somehow, she had lost her memories of her previous life–about her mother, Cigyn, her husband, and her son–and married Alvis, who was, at the time, the lord of house Velthomer. Deirdre also met the previous king of Grandbell, Azmur, who was ill at the time. However, illness did not stop Azmur from identifying the markings on Deirdre's forehead that identified her as a descendant of the crusader Heim. These markings also served to identify her as Azmur's granddaughter. Since her father had died, Azmur named Alvis as his successor. Together, they had a son named Julius. However, years ago, Deirdre suddenly died, and Celice had begun to hear rumors that Prince Julius was involved. Celice did not doubt this; Julius was the closest thing to evil that he knew. It was Julius that was responsible for the child hunting that was taking place throughout Jugdral. The children gathered up in these hunts were then transported to the Imperial capital of Barhara, where they were used in the prince's dark rituals.

On the other hand, Celice still had some faint memories of his father. Sigurd had been killed when Celice was a toddler. After Prince Kurth, Deirdre's father, had been assassinated, the blame was pinned on Sigurd's father, Lord Byron of Chalphy, as well as Lord Ring of Jungby. The two men were innocent, however. The real culprit was Langbart, lord of house Dozel, and his accomplice was Reptor, the lord of Freege and Prime Minister of Grandbell, as well as Blume's father. Actually, Langbart and Reptor had not initially planned to drag Ring into it, but after Ring's son, Andre, killed him, they had no choice. After that, they captured Byron. Byron escaped, however, and with the last of his strength, delivered the holy sword, Tyrfing, to his son. Sigurd, now with a holy weapon in his hand, was able to kill both Langbart and Reptor with his own hands, despite the two of them each wielding a holy weapon–Langbart had the holy axe, Swanchika; and Reptor had the holy tome of thunder magic, Torhammer. After that, he made his way to Velthomer Castle, where he met with Ida, the captain of Velthomer's elite mage brigade, the Roten Ritter. She led him and his troops to Barhara under the guise of there being a reception led by Alvis. However, this reception was a trap, and Alvis and the Roten Ritter decimated Sigurd's army. Alvis himself killed Sigurd with his own holy weapon, the magic tome Falaflame. There were survivors, but they were few: Lady Aideen of Jungby, who was currently living in a convent in the Isaacian town of Tilnanogue; Lachesis, who fled to Lenster, but disappeared in the Yied Desert in an attempt to reach Isaac; Prince Levin of Silesia, who was currently serving Celice as an advisor of sorts; Fury, who had returned to her homeland of Silesia, where she eventually succumbed to illness; and Tiltyu, who had gone to Silesia, had been found by her brother, Blume, and brought to Alster. While in Alster, Tiltyu had endured constant verbal and emotional abuse from her sister-in-law, Hilda, which in turn led to her own death. Celice also suspected that another member of Sigurd's army, Sylvia, had survived, as one of the members of his own army, a dancer named Leen, had told him that her mother was also a dancer.

Celice sat up. It seemed futile to him to continue lying there if he was not going to stop thinking about things. He grabbed his cape, threw it around his shoulders, and walked out into the hallway.

After he walked down a flight of stairs, he walked through the corridor where other members of his army were sleeping. He could hear light snores coming from Skasaha's room, and he was forced to suppress a laugh when he heard Johan talking about his "darling Lakche" in his sleep. However, he noticed that one of the doors was ajar. He peered in and found the room empty. Then, from a nearby window, he heard what he thought was sobbing. It sounded like it was coming from the courtyard, so Celice made that his next destination.

The courtyard of Alster Castle was quite breathtaking. It was circular in shape, with eight stone pathways leading up to a marble fountain in the center. Between the pathways grew flowers in a myriad of colors. The fountain in the center was in the shape of a charging cavalier, lance in hand and sword sheathed at his side. Celice recalled that Alster had prided itself in its army of paladins, much like those of Nodion or Chalphy. It was on the edge of the pool surrounding the fountain that Celice found the source of the sound he had heard upstairs. There sat Nanna, face in her hands and sobbing.

Celice realized that Nanna had not seen or heard him approach, so he figured he should somehow make himself known. He took a slow breath and said, "Nanna."

Nanna looked up immediately, horror evident in her eyes. "Oh, god, it's P-Prince Celice!" She tried to turn away from him, but Celice simply walked around to where she was facing.

"What are you doing?" Celice asked.

"I c-can't let you, our leader, s-see me like this!" Nanna exclaimed. She tried to turn away again, but Celice circled around again.

"Nanna, there's nothing wrong with letting out your emotions," Celice said. "I certainly won't think any worse of you for letting them out." He then walked up next to her. "May I sit here?" Nanna nodded, hiccuping as she did so. Celice turned around and sat next to her. "Can you tell me what is troubling you?"

Nanna shook her head vigorously. "Don't concern yourself with my troubles."

"Listen, Nanna," Celice began. "A moment ago, you called me your leader. As a leader, the well-being of my men is my responsibility. I need to be able to understand them and make sure they trust me. One way to gain trust is to help people when they need it. I can do that for you, too."

Nanna looked at him. "Can you resurrect the dead?"

Celice frowned. "I'm no high priest of Edda, so that power eludes me."

"Then there's nothing you can do to help."

"You misunderstand me," Celice replied. "When I said I wanted to help you, I did not necessarily mean that I could rectify your problem. Sometimes all it requires to help someone is a willing ear."

Nanna hiccuped. "All . . . All right, I'll tell you. You know who my brother is, right?"

"Yes," Celice answered. "I've known Delmud since we were both children."

"Well, I just met him for the first time today," Nanna said. "I asked him where our mother is, and he didn't know, and was confused, because he thought she was in Lenster. I told him that she had left years ago to see you in Isaac, but he told me that she never arrived . . . " She then dissolved into tears again.

Celice looked at his knees. "I see," he said. "Lachesis never made it across the Yied Desert." He then looked at Nanna. "However, we've cleared the Yied of all Lopt influence. The desert should be less treacherous now. I know it can't bring your mother back, but . . . " He took a deep breath. "You know, I sort of envy you."

Nanna sat up and looked at Celice again. "What do you mean?"

"I find myself unable to shed a single tear over my mother. She disappeared when I was still a baby. You, on the other hand, had the privilege of knowing your mother and can shed tears over her disappearance from your life."

"I never knew my father, though," Nanna said. "He died along with your father in Barhara before I was even born. You at least knew yours, though you might not necessarily remember him."

"True," Celice said. He then noticed Nanna shiver. "You're cold, aren't you?"

Nanna shook her head. "I'm fine."

"Nanna, you're shivering," Celice replied. He then removed his cape and draped it around Nanna.

Nanna looked at Celice. "Prince Celice, but what are you going to do? You're more valuable than I."

"A little cold won't bother me," Celice said. "You're both shorter and thinner than I am, and you've been out here longer than I have, so you need the cape more than I do."

Nanna opened her mouth to protest again, but changed her mind. She then looked out at the rest of the courtyard.

Celice followed her gaze. "It's beautiful, isn't it? It feels like the world is at peace when you're in this courtyard." His gaze then hardened. "You'd never know that miles to the east, an assault was being planned on this castle."

Nanna looked at Celice, whose stare remained fixed on the rest of the courtyard. As she looked at him, she realized what he was going through. He was barely even an adult, yet he was in command of an entire army, responsible for their lives. If he made a tactical error, the cost would be paid with their blood. Also wearing on him was his compassionate side. He trudged through this war with the knowledge that he would be ending lives and rending families constantly weighing down his conscience. He had already vocally expressed his dissatisfaction with killing Ishtor, the son of Blume and steward of Melgen Castle, and Liza, his lieutenant and lover, and would likely be forced to kill more people that he did not wish to kill. Only the belief that his cause was just kept him going. Also mixed in with these troubles was a fear that he would begin to crave battle. He had already felt no remorse in killing Dannan, the lord of Dozel and steward of Isaac, and feared becoming as desensitized to the deaths of Imperial soldiers as he had been to Dannan's death.

These feelings were not alien to Nanna, though. Though she was only a couple of years younger than Celice, she had already seen enough bloodshed for five lifetimes. Her childhood had been one of danger and secrecy–the Imperial forces occupying Northern Thracia wanted Prince Leaf dead in the same way they wanted Celice dead, and having grown up with the heir to Lenster's throne and a loyal knight of Lenster, she would have been killed, too. This resulted in the three of them fleeing from town to town, though they were careful to never cross the border into the Kingdom of Thracia--a kingdom that occupied the southern half of the Thracian Peninsula and the only kingdom that the Empire had not conquered. Thracia's king, Trabant, wanted Leaf and those who protected him dead just as badly as the Empire did. It was Trabant that killed Leaf's parents and elder sister, hoping it would bring him further to his goal of conquering the northern half of the peninsula. However, after the Battle of Barhara, Grandbell moved in, pushed Trabant's forces back south, and took Northern Thracia itself. She knew what it was like to have to fight just to survive, and to worry about becoming desensitized to the bloodshed.

Nanna brushed a hand across her cheek, and realized that she had stopped crying and was now beginning to feel sleepy. "I'm feeling better now, and I think I should get some sleep."

"All right," Celice said. "I might try to do the same, though it always feels like I'm fighting a losing battle." The two of them got up and walked back toward the hallway where the troops' quarters were. As they walked, Celice had an idea. Quietly, he began to hum a gentle, serene melody, hoping it might help him go to sleep. However, it was not so quiet that Nanna did not hear it.

"What is that you're humming?" Nanna asked.

"Huh?" Celice's face flushed. "Oh. It's . . . a lullaby. It was a song that my mother sang to me when I was a baby. Before she vanished, though, she taught it to Lady Aideen, who then sang it to me after that."

"So Lady Aideen was sort of a surrogate mother to you, then?" Nanna asked.

"Not just me," Celice said. "She acted as a mother not only to her own two children, but to myself, Skasaha, Lakche, and Delmud, as well."

"I see," Nanna said. "It's a beautiful melody. Would you teach it to me some time?"

"Sure, why not?" Celice replied. They then stopped in front of a door. "This is your room, is it not?"

Nanna nodded. She then removed the cape wrapped around her and returned it to its rightful owner. "Good night." She then walked toward her door, but then turned around. "Oh . . . and thank you, Prince Celice."

Celice nodded. "Any time you need someone to talk to, you need simply to let me know."

Nanna smiled. "I'll remember that." With that, she entered her room.

Celice continued along toward his own quarters. That had been the first time he had ever seen Nanna smile. He had heard that she was as beautiful as her mother had been, but it had never really registered with him until he saw her smile. Celice then shook his head. "We're in the middle of a war," he muttered to himself. "There will be plenty of time to think about women after this war ends, assuming we survive."

As Celice walked, he failed to notice one thing. One of the doors was slightly ajar, and a single brown eye, with a vantage point that included the entrance to Nanna's quarters, peered through the opening. After Celice walked by, the door closed.


	3. Chapter 3

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Fire Emblem, nor do I own the characters in Fire Emblem. I do, however, own any characters I create for the purpose of this story.

When Swords Cross

CHAPTER THREE

Celice went over the plans in his head one more time. Leaf, Nanna, and Fin would guard Lenster against Blume's invading forces, while the bulk of the army would depart from Alster and fight their way toward Conote. As he prepared to sortie, however, something seemed off to him. He found out exactly what it was that was wrong before he even left the castle gates.

"Prince Celice!" shouted the reconnaissance soldier as he rode into the castle. "I bring urgent news!"

"Calm down!" Celice responded. "I'm right here. Now, what news do you bring?"

"Prince Celice, the group of Freege knights headed for Lenster is headed by Lady Ishtar herself!" the soldier exclaimed. "And she's armed with the Torhammer spell!"

"WHAT?!" It was now Celice's turn to shout. He then turned around and headed back toward the castle. "Change of plans!" he yelled as he reached the rest of his troops. "I've just received word that Lady Ishtar is armed with Torhammer and leading the charge on Lenster. Shanan, Aless, I want the two of you to ride toward Lenster with me."

Levin stepped forward. "Celice, you cannot afford the time to head toward Lenster yourself. Your goal is to seize Conote, and you'll need Aless and Shanan's help to do that."

"I'm not sacrificing our allies of Lenster, Levin!" Celice responded. "After we fight off the initial offensive, we'll have more time to seize Conote without Leaf or either of his companions dying in the process! I'm sorry, Levin, but I'm overriding your judgment in this situation. Now, let's go, so we can reach Lenster before Ishtar does."

-3-

Outside of the castle, Celice turned to the two warriors he had selected. The person standing to Celice's left was Shanan, the prince of Isaac. Shanan was partly responsible for Celice's upbringing, having shared the duty with Oifaye and Aideen. Shanan was still a child when war broke out between Grandbell and Isaac, and had been taken to Verdane for safekeeping by his aunt, Aira. There, Aira was forced into servitude for Kinbois, the second of the three princes of Verdane, and was not freed from this until Sigurd's army invaded Verdane. After that, Sigurd granted Shanan sanctuary, something which would eventually be used to support the charges of treason levied against him. After the tragedy at Barhara, Oifaye and Shanan took Celice, Skasaha, Lakche, Lester, and Delmud, all toddlers at the time, to Isaac. However, unlike Oifaye, Shanan always found it hard to face Celice. The reason for this is that it was on Shanan's watch that Deirdre vanished. No matter how many times Celice had tried to tell Shanan that Deirdre's disappearance was not his fault, he would not listen. Nevertheless, Shanan played an important role in Celice's training. Shanan himself was a peerless swordsman, accentuated by the fact that he was capable of using Balmung, the holy sword originally used by the crusader Odo. This was part of the reason Celice had chosen Shanan for this mission.

The person on Celice's right was sitting on a horse and awaiting orders. This person was Aless, the son of Lord Eltshan of Nodion. Aless had been a toddler when Eltshan had been wrongfully accused of treason and executed. After Eltshan's death, Aless and his mother had traveled to Lenster, where relatives of hers lived. She soon died, and Aless was taken under the wing of the mercenary Jabarro. He would later turn against Jabarro due to the fact that he left a dancer named Leen in the custody of Bramsel, the perverted steward of Darna–a steward whom Leen had openly insulted, forcing Aless to step in to defend her. It was the fact that Jabarro's mercenary company had begun to chase him that led him into fighting alongside Celice. In truth, Aless had wanted Celice dead until recently. Aless had not known the true circumstances of his father's death, and had believed that Sigurd had murdered him. It took a letter from his father to convince him otherwise. This relieved Celice, because he never wanted to fight against such a formidable opponent. Aless was every bit his father's son, down to the fact that he could wield the Mistoltin, a sword originally used by the crusader Hezul. Like with Shanan, Aless's ability to use the Mistoltin was part of the reason Celice had chosen him.

"We need to discuss strategy first and foremost," Celice said. "Rushing in blindly will just invite death. From what Levin has told me, Torhammer is frighteningly accurate. Levin said Torhammer's accuracy was enough to even cancel out the amount of speed that Holsety had granted him. He had to rely on the natural advantage wind magic had over thunder magic to survive the fight with Lord Reptor. Therefore, I propose this." He turned to Aless. "Aless, you lead the attack against Ishtar. Mistoltin will help to protect you from her magic." He then turned to Shanan. "Shanan, I want you to follow Aless's attack with one of your own, assuming Aless cannot kill her or force her to retreat. In case the two of you combined are unsuccessful in forcing her out of the battle, I will discuss options with Leaf, Fin, and Nanna when we arrive at Lenster."

"I just have one question, Celice," Aless said. "If you'll recall, it was I who defeated Blume in Alster, and he was armed with Torhammer when I fought him. Why should a fight with his daughter be any more dangerous?"

"Because an open field is a lot less restrictive than a castle corridor," Shanan replied before Celice had a chance to respond. "As you know, magic has a greater range than any sword not imbued with a magic spell. In the middle of a castle, Blume was unable to use this to his advantage. However, in an open field, Ishtar will have no trouble keeping her distance while you're forced to attempt to dodge. After all, there's only so much added mobility a horse can provide. Still, you're better off than I am when it comes to getting close to the enemies."

At the mention of Aless's horse, Celice looked down at his new steed. This was a horse that Oifaye had prepared for him with the aid of some Alster knights. It had been intended for the king of Alster before he was slain by the Empire. Its hair was the purest shade of white Celice had ever seen, and it was extremely strong. It was also much faster than even Oifaye's steed, and had more endurance than any horse Celice had seen.

Celice looked up from his horse to the two men before him. "All right, let's move out! To Lenster!"

-3-

"So, why exactly is it you're here?" Leaf asked.

"You haven't heard?" Celice replied.

"Heard what?"

"Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but . . . " Celice took a deep breath. "Ishtar is headed this way. To make matters worse, she's armed with Torhammer."

Leaf cursed. "So you're here to provide backup?"

"Not so much backup as to handle Ishtar ourselves," Celice replied. "Shanan and Aless are the two people most capable of handling Ishtar, since they each possess a holy weapon themselves. I will be their backup."

"Shouldn't you focus on taking Conote instead?" Leaf asked.

"I left Oifaye in charge of the main army," Celice replied. "He can lead them to Conote and take it before I arrive with little difficulty. Remember, now that Ishtar has Torhammer, it means that Blume no longer possesses a holy weapon."

"I see," Leaf said. "However, with all due respect, I question the necessity of having you back up Prince Shanan and Lord Aless. Surely Fin or myself could take on that role." Before Celice could reply, however, Fin spoke.

"Prince Leaf, we need to stay behind them. We are the last line of defense before Freege's forces reach Lenster. I think Prince Celice's plan is more sound. However, I do question your decision to serve as backup alone. I think Nanna should join you on the second line."

"Why her?" Leaf asked. "Why can't you accompany Celice, Fin? You're a far better fighter than either Nanna or myself."

"This is true," Fin said. "However, Nanna can use healing staves, an ability which you and I both lack. If she joins Celice on the second line of defense, it allows her better accessibility to all fronts. She can run back here or up to the front to heal, then pull back."

Leaf frowned. He knew he was not going to win this argument. "Fine. I don't agree with this one bit, except for having Prince Shanan and Lord Aless on the front lines, but I guess I'm outnumbered on this."

-3-

Celice looked over at Nanna and noticed a troubled expression on her face. "What's wrong?" he asked.

Nanna looked up at him. "Nothing."

Celice frowned. "Nanna, I can tell that something is bothering you. It's Leaf, isn't it?"

Nanna hesitated for a moment, and then nodded. "It has to do with the way he acted before, when we were discussing our strategy. I've never seen him like that. He usually favors the plans that Fin provides, knowing that they usually lead to minimized casualties. This is the first time I've ever seen him openly oppose one of Fin's ideas."

"Well, I suppose I can see why you'd be troubled," Celice said. "I wonder why?"

"I think I know," Nanna said. "It has to do with you. I don't think he wanted you here, and not for the reason that Conote would fall sooner were you with the main army, either."

This confused Celice. "Why would Leaf not want me here, if not to seize Conote sooner?"

"I don't know," Nanna answered. "Did something happen between the two of you?"

"If something did happen between us, I'm not aware of it," Celice responded. What Nanna had told him had begun to weigh on his mind, as well, but he shook his head. "No, I can't let myself be distracted from the battle," he muttered to himself. Both Shanan and Oifaye had drilled it into him that carelessness on the battlefield invited death, and he had done his best to adhere to that teaching. He would not let himself deviate from it now, especially with Lenster on the line.

-3-

The amount of focus Celice had put on the battlefield had turned out to be the difference. As Celice had feared, Aless and Shanan were unable to stop Ishtar without backup, so Celice charged in to do battle. However, no sooner had he landed a single blow against Ishtar than something unexpected happened. From out of nowhere, a young man, who looked to be two or three years younger than Celice, appeared at Ishtar's side. He had long, red hair and dressed entirely in black, and upon his forehead was a red mark. When this young man appeared, a wave of dread had washed over Celice. He seemed to exude evil from every orifice on his body. It took him a moment to realize that he was looking upon his half-brother and fellow Imperial Prince, Julius.

Celice knew much about Julius's reputation. According to rumor, Julius had killed his own mother, Deirdre, and his twin sister. Other than that, everything Celice had heard about his half-brother was true; Julius had ordered the child hunts that took place in every Imperial territory except for Isaac–due to Johan and Johalva, the younger two of Dannan's three sons, who had no desire to listen to Julius–and Grandbell itself. These children were sent to Barhara, where Julius used them in his dark rituals. Julius was so powerful that not even his father, Emperor Alvis, could control him. Every form of discipline that Alvis had attempted to use on his son backfired, so he had been forced to stop trying. He also had received great shamanic powers from his mother, and could warp from place to place at will. Greater than these abilities, however, was his proficiency in dark magic. His skills with the dark arts put Lopt priests twice his age to shame. In fact, the only Lopt cultist whose proficiency in dark magic came even close to Julius's was Manfloy, the archbishop of the sect.

Julius spoke to Ishtar for a moment, though Celice could not hear what his half-brother was saying. He noticed that Julius glanced at him for a brief moment, then he and Ishtar vanished.

Celice sat on his horse, staring at the place where Julius had been standing. It was clear that he did not consider Celice to be a significant threat to him. Unfortunately, arrogant as Julius was, he was most likely correct. Celice had heard the stories of the tome of dark magic Julius carried. It was said to reduce even the mightiest blow to a mere scratch. Not even the holy weapons could amount to much damage against it. As his thoughts began to consume his attention, he heard a scream. Instinctively, Celice spun his horse around toward the source and gasped.

Nanna had been locked in combat with a swordsman, and the enemy had just struck her. A gash ran from Nanna's right thigh to the left side of her waist, and blood had begun to flow from the cut. Abandoning all thought, Celice charged toward the enemy. The swordsman barely had time to turn around before he felt the cold silver of Celice's sword slice through the right side of his torso. He slumped to the ground. Celice then rode over to Nanna, but when he stopped next to her, she fell from her saddle. Celice reacted quickly and caught her. He pulled her over onto his horse, where he then cradled her in his arms.

Panic began to set in, and Celice glanced at Nanna's wound. He then looked at her face, which was contorted in pain. Despite the pain, she was still able to speak. "Prince Celice . . . leave me . . . go on to Conote . . . without me . . . "

"No, Nanna!" Celice exclaimed. "I'm taking you with me! I'm not letting you die!"

"But . . . Prince Celice, I'll . . . only slow you down . . . " Nanna protested.

"I don't care!" Celice half-shouted. "Blume should be dead by now, so I'm not needed to fight over there!" He then slid Nanna closer to him, kept his left hand underneath her head, and grabbed his horse's reins with his right hand. He then had his horse run east, toward Conote.

A few minutes after the horse began running, Celice heard Nanna complain about thirst. This worried him, as he knew that thirst was a sign of shock. He immediately looked down at his ward, and saw her eyelids begin to droop. Celice shook her gently. "No, Nanna, don't close your eyes! Stay with me, here!"

"I don't think I can . . . " muttered Nanna. "I'm sorry . . . "

Celice's eyes began to cloud with tears. "No! Nanna, you will not die! I swear on my lineage that I will get you to our healers in time!"

The next thing that happened caught him by surprise. Nanna shuffled closer to Celice and pressed her head against his chest. "Warmth . . . "

Celice felt his face heat up, and knew that he had turned red. Nevertheless, he rode toward Conote at top speed.

-3-

The door opened and Levin, Lana, and Julia walked out. Celice jumped away from the wall against which he had been leaning. "Well?"

"She'll be all right," Levin replied. "Our magic was able to heal the wound completely. She won't even have a scar. Right now she just needs to rest."

Celice sagged in relief. "That makes me feel a lot better, myself. I don't know what I would have done if she had died."

Julia tilted her head, puzzled. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Because if she had died, it would have been my fault," Celice answered with a quiver in his voice. "I was too shaken up by the fact that Julius had appeared on the battlefield, and had diverted my attention to him. If I hadn't let him get to me, I would have seen Nanna fighting her enemy before she got injured, and I would have been able to stop her from getting injured in the first place."

"Do you honestly believe that?" Levin asked.

Celice looked at Levin, confused. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that you need to not be so self-focused," Levin replied. "Just because you were there doesn't mean you could have stopped it. In fact, it might have been you who was injured had you seen the fight sooner, not Nanna. You may have the talent for swordsmanship that your father had, but you are far from perfect."

Celice winced. It was times like these that made him wonder what happened to the easygoing playboy that Oifaye, Shanan, and Fin had described Levin to be when he fought alongside Sigurd. He could only assume that his hardened exterior came from a life of constant fighting for the past two decades.

Levin noticed Celice's discomfort, and eased back a little bit. "In any case, you shouldn't be concerning yourself with possible outcomes. Instead, you should focus that mental energy on the actual outcome. You did that before, when you raced toward Conote with an injured person on your lap. Don't falter now."

"Yes, sir," Celice responded.

"Don't call me 'sir,' Celice," said Levin.

"Sorry."

-3-

Celice walked into the room where Nanna lay. The covers were pulled up to her neck, so he could not see the injured area. "Are you all right?" he asked.

Nanna turned her head toward him. "Thanks to you," she said weakly. "Though if I were actually worth something to this army, this wouldn't have happened. I'm just a burden." Tears began to form in her eyes.

Celice stood up. "Don't do this, Nanna. I just got lectured out in the hallway a few hours ago by Levin about something similar. I kept telling myself that had I not been so distracted by Julius's sudden appearance, I could have prevented you from getting hurt. Levin opened my eyes to the possibility that, had I noticed before you got hurt and rushed in, I might have gotten hurt. You're not a burden on this army. You're a descendant of the crusader Hezul, and a fine swordswoman. You can also heal. In fact, it's thanks to you that I'm not still bandaged up from the arrow I took to the gut before I seized Alster. To be honest, if you hadn't healed me, you might be lying on the ground halfway between here and Lenster as dead as the man who gave you that wound. For all we know, I would not have been in any shape to accompany you to the second line. I would have been surrounded by the rest of my army as we charged toward Conote."

Nanna stared at Celice for a moment. "You're right. I'm sorry I upset you, Prince Celice."

"You know, you can drop the formalities, Nanna," Celice replied. "We're not in court."

"But you just saved my life. It wouldn't be proper to address you informally."

"It's because I saved your life that I want you to drop the formalities," Celice responded. "After all, who can go through something like that and not befriend the other person involved?"

"You consider me a friend?"

"Well, what do you consider me to be, other than your leader?" Celice asked. "I highly doubt it's just that, seeing as you pressed yourself against my chest as we were riding this way." This caused Nanna to turn as red as Celice had been when the action had taken place, and she turned away for a moment. Celice laughed. "No reason to be embarrassed. I can't imagine how much pain you were in, but I can imagine your need of some sort of comfort, be it warmth or something else."

Nanna turned back to Celice. "Um, Pr–I mean, Celice–could I ask you a favor?"

"What is it?" Celice asked.

"That lullaby your mother sang to you when you were a baby . . . can you teach it to me?"

Celice grinned. "Sure, why not? Just be careful not to fall asleep while I sing it, all right?"

Nanna smiled.


	4. Chapter 4

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Fire Emblem, nor do I own the characters in Fire Emblem. I do, however, own any characters I create for the purpose of this story.

When Swords Cross

CHAPTER FOUR

Celice stood at the entrance to Miletos Castle, waiting for his scouts. As he waited, he reflected on everything that had happened since the liberation of Conote and frowned. King Trabant of Thracia had decided to encroach on the treaty his kingdom had signed with the Empire. His goal ever since he became king was to unify the Thracian Peninsula under his rule, and as soon as Conote fell, he acted upon that goal by sending a squad of dragon knights after the remaining territory in Northern Thracia, Manster. However, around the same time that Celice's army captured Conote, the government in Manster fell at the hands of the citizens, led by Sety, the prince of Silesia. With word of Thracia's dragon knights coming toward the castle, the civilians fled, and Sety stayed behind to cover their retreat. Celice's army charged forward, aided Sety, and pressed forward into the Kingdom of Thracia proper, capturing Mease Castle along the way. Trabant refused to stand for this, so he launched a full-scale assault on Mease. Celice's army successfully repelled the assault, killing Trabant in the process. He then led his army through the rest of Thracia, making their way to the capital, which was guarded by Trabant's son, Arion. Arion was defeated, but was whisked away by Julius in the same manner that Ishtar had been. Celice then moved in to capture the capital.

Celice's army then moved into the mercantile Miletos District, seizing the castles along the way. The final castle, Miletos, was guarded by–much to Celice's surprise–Julius and Ishtar. His men were unable to stop Julius, but they did hurt Ishtar enough to force her to retreat, taking Julius with her. They then seized the castle.

Celice saw two figures in the sky, flying toward the castle. As they neared, he was able to discern between the two. The flier on the left was Fee, Sety's younger sister and the princess of Silesia. Fee had grown up with her older brother and her mother, Fury, in Silesia. After Fury's death, Sety left to find their absent father. As time passed, no word came from the Silesian prince, so Fee set out to look for him. Along the way, she came across Celice's army, and was accepted into their ranks.

The flier on the right was Altenna, Leaf's older sister and the princess of Lenster. Until recently, Altenna was believed to be dead, to have been killed in the Yied Massacre alongside her parents and the Lanzen Ritter. She had accompanied the battalion of dragon knights that attacked Manster, but unwilling to attack civilians, she simply perched her mount on a mountain and watched. Unbeknownst to her, she had caught Fin's eye, and Fin immediately recognized the lance she held as the Gae Bolg, a holy weapon once used by the crusader Noba. Since only descendants of Noba could wield the Gae Bolg, Fin deduced that its holder was Altenna. He then brought this to Leaf's attention, and in the first wave of dragon knights that attacked Mease, Leaf confronted his sister. His conviction led to doubt in his sister's mind, and she flew back to the capital to confront her stepfather. Trabant, seeing no point in keeping up his facade, told her the truth, which sent Altenna into a rage and forced Arion to knock her out. When she finally came to, Trabant was dead and Arion encouraged her to go meet with her cousin's army.

Fee landed first, then Altenna followed, with a passenger on her dragon's back. Celice resisted the urge to ask about Altenna's passenger. Instead, he asked, "So, what's the situation?"

"It isn't good," Altenna answered. "The Roten Ritter has formed at the other side of the bridge to Grandbell. We'll have to break through them if we want to reach Chalphy."

Celice frowned. The Roten Ritter were Velthomer's elite unit of fire mages. It had been the Roten Ritter that had rained meteors upon his father's army nearly twenty years ago. However, he could not see their being nearby unless their leader was. "I take it that it gets worse?"

Solemnly, Altenna nodded. "Reaching Chalphy will not end the battle. In fact, the most difficult fight will be at the castle. As I'm sure you suspect due to the presence of the Roten Ritter, defending the castle is none other than Emperor Alvis himself."

Celice turned pale. He had suspected this, but had hoped he would not run into the emperor so soon. He knew all too well about Alvis's past. He had been the lord of Velthomer since his childhood, when his father, Lord Victor, had committed suicide. When the king of Grandbell fell ill, Alvis had traveled to Barhara to watch over him while the prince led the bulk of Grandbell's army to confront Isaac. While he was there, he found a young woman, in poor health and amnesiac. He took her in, nursed her back to health, and fell in love with her in the process. Because of the markings on her forehead, the king was able to identify her as a member of the royal family, meaning she was the prince's daughter. This woman was none other than Deirdre, Sigurd's wife and Celice's mother.

At some point, Alvis had begun communication with the Lopt archbishop, Manfloy. Unbeknownst to the general population, Alvis was, in addition to being a direct descendant of the crusader Fala, an indirect descendant of the archbishop Galle, who had formed the Lopt Empire centuries ago. Deirdre was also an indirect descendant of Galle, which explained why their son, Julius, was so prominent in dark magic. Manfloy was able to persuade Alvis to comply with his plans, and in the battle of Barhara, Alvis abandoned Langbart, betrayed Reptor, and killed Sigurd. After the king's death, Alvis pushed Grandbell's military into Silesia and Northern Thracia, thus forming the Grandbell Empire.

However, these days, Alvis was emperor in name only. Julius had grown beyond Alvis's control, and was beginning to handle the Empire himself. When Julius inherited the throne, it was feared that the Lopt Empire would be revived.

This presented a problem for Celice. While he had lost much of his political power over the years, Alvis's fighting prowess remained intact. In fact, most of the members of Celice's army would be unable to withstand even a single casting of Alvis's Falaflame spell. The only people who would stand much of a chance against Alvis were Shanan and Aless. Not even Sety, with his Holsety wind magic, could handle Alvis, due to fire magic's advantage over wind magic. Celice determined that the best course of action would be the same as the course he had taken against Ishtar in Northern Thracia. It pained him to do this, as Alvis was the reason that Celice was an orphan. He would have preferred to stop Alvis with his own blade, but without a holy weapon, he stood little chance.

Celice sighed. "All right. I think I know how to deal with Alvis. Now, Altenna, may I ask why you have a passenger?"

Altenna gestured to the old man behind her. "Celice, this man says he needs to speak with you. We saved him and a group of children from a group of dark mages on the cape east of Chalphy Castle."

"Very well," Celice said. "He may speak to me."

The old man descended from Altenna's dragon and walked up to Celice. As he looked upon the prince, tears filled his eyes. "Ah, Prince Celice. How much you've grown. I can see the resemblence between you and each of your parents now."

Celice was confused. As far as he could remember, he had never met this man before, but he seemed to know Celice's parents. "Who are you?"

"I beg your pardon," the man said. "My name is Palmark. I am a bishop who served your grandfather, Lord Byron."

"Which explains how you know my parents," Celice responded. "Why did you want to see me?"

"It seems to me that you wish to confront Emperor Alvis, the man who killed your father and stole away your mother," Palmark said. "Yet at the moment, you lack the ability to do so. However, I have something for you that will enable you to defeat the emperor." He reached inside his robe and pulled out a sword.

Celice studied the sword for a moment. It had a long blade, perfect for mounted combat. The blade, though it had been used before, looked as immaculate as it would have if it had just been forged. Its blade glistened in the sunlight, and the jewel in the hilt sparkled. Celice's eyes widened. He knew what sword this was. "It can't be . . . "

Palmark nodded. "This is the heirloom of House Chalphy, the blade used by the crusader Baldo. Your father used this blade to strike down Lord Langbart and Lord Reptor. This is Tyrfing."

Celice could hardly believe what he was seeing and hearing. He knew about the powers Tyrfing bestowed upon its user. It would amplify his natural skill and evasiveness, and would help to shield him from magic. With Tyrfing in his hands, Alvis's Falaflame would only be able to hurt Celice. Alvis would need to cast the spell multiple times if he hoped to kill him. It turned a one-on-one fight between the Emperor of Grandbell and the Prince of Light from a one-sided battle into a fair fight that could go either way. Celice reached out, took Tyrfing from Palmark's hands, and wrapped his right hand around the hilt. As he did so, he felt an unusual warmth flow from the sword into his body. He swung it around a few times, then hooked it into his belt. He then turned to Altenna and Fee. "Assemble everyone. We need to discuss our plans."

-4-

With everyone gathered around the table with a map of northern Miletos and the Chalphy dukedom, Celice began to speak.

"From what Princess Altenna and Princess Fee have reported, the Roten Ritter is amassed across the channel." Celice pointed at the northern end of the bridge connecting the Miletos District to Grandbell proper. "Lord Aless will lead the charge, followed by Prince Shanan and Lord Arthur." He knew that the three of them would fare best against the Roten Ritter. Aless could withstand a heavier magical onslaught than the average person due to the Mistoltin, and Shanan would be able to evade almost any attack directed at him due to Balmung. Arthur, while incapable of wielding a holy weapon, was a descendant of the crusader Tordo, and was more adept with thunder magic than the average person. He was armed with a tome of Thoron magic, thunder magic second only to Torhammer in potence. Due to thunder magic's advantage over fire magic, he would be the best person to back up Shanan and Aless.

"After the Roten Ritter is cleared away, we will have a clear shot at the castle. However, the emperor himself is guarding Chalphy. No one here is to engage him in combat. He is mine."

"Celice, I understand that you wish to exact revenge for your parents, but you'll only get yourself killed," Levin said. "Alvis is armed with a holy weapon."

"As am I," Celice replied. He pulled Tyrfing from its scabbard. "The sword of the crusader Baldo is back in the hands of a Chalphy."

"Your Highness, how did you get Tyrfing?" Oifaye asked, astonished. "I'm certain that Emperor Alvis would have taken it after the Battle of Barhara."

"He had," Celice responded. "However, a bishop named Palmark–a man who had served my grandfather, the previous lord of Chalphy–had recovered it and delivered it to me. With this, I am our best chance at defeating Emperor Alvis." He then looked around at the rest of his army. "Does everyone understand the plan?" He waited a few seconds for questions. "All right, then. Let's go! Grandbell awaits!"

As the rest of the army filtered out of the room, however, Celice lingered behind. He stared at the map that lay on the table, lost in thought. It was not until he heard someone call his name that he snapped out of his thoughts.

"Celice?"

"Oh, Nanna. What is it?"

"Aren't you going to leave?" Nanna asked.

"Yes, in a moment," Celice replied. "I was just thinking."

Nanna looked down at the map. "This will be the first time you set foot in Grandbell, will it not?"

Celice nodded. "This is the land that my father called home. In fact, the castle we'll be attacking is my family's castle. However, it just doesn't feel like much of a homecoming. This is the land of which I am a prince, yet I know little about it. I was born in Agustria, and raised in Silesia and Isaac. It just feels strange to be alienated from the land that bore my ancestors."

"I know exactly what you mean," Nanna replied. "My lineage traces back to Agustria. As you'll recall, my uncle was the last lord of Nodion. However, I've never set foot there. I was born and raised in Northern Thracia. We fled from town to town, eluding Imperial capture. I would someday like to see my homeland, but I don't know if I can necessarily call it home."

Celice nodded, but continued to stare at the map. Nanna looked at him, puzzled. "You're worried about facing Emperor Alvis, aren't you?"

Celice hung his head. "Yes. I have heard how lethal he is. His Falaflame is powerful enough to burn his enemies to ashes with a single cast. Tyrfing will help to protect me, but I'm afraid I might not be strong enough to face my father's murderer yet."

"You can, Celice." Nanna put her hand on Celice's right shoulder. "Just believe in yourself, and you'll prevail. You're already one of our best warriors, even without a holy weapon. Now that you have Tyrfing, I can't see how anything or anyone could stop you."

Celice looked Nanna in the eyes. "You're right, Nanna. I won't get anywhere second-guessing my abilities." He rested his hand on Tyrfing's hilt. "Let's go. We need to take the home of my father and grandfather back from the clutches of the Empire, and no one–not even the emperor himself–will stand in my way."

-4-

Shanan and Arthur forced an opening through the formation of the Roten Ritter, and Celice charged toward Chalphy. When he reached the gate, he brought his horse to a halt and dismounted. He looked upon the castle that had been home to his father, Sigurd, and wondered what it would have been like to see it when the Chalphys still resided in the castle. He then noticed something odd. The front gate to the castle was open. Despite his fear of a trap, Celice walked into the castle. There to greet him was Alvis, the emperor of Grandbell.

Celice looked upon his enemy. Alvis showed no sign of the dashing young man he had been twenty years ago. His face was worn with stress and wrought with anxiety. He wrapped himself in a large, red cloak, so Celice had no idea what the emperor was wearing.

"So you decided to come, Celice," Alvis said. "I commend your courage, though it won't be enough to get you out of here alive."

"We shall see about that, Emperor Alvis." Celice met Alvis's gaze with a sharp glare that would make a lesser man turn and run in fear for his life.

Alvis waved his hand. "Drop the formalities, Celice. After all, our weapons don't use them, so why should we?"

"I'd be more than happy to drop the formalities," Celice replied curtly. "I also no longer see the need for words. We should let our weapons do the talking from here on out."

Alvis chuckled. "Ah, the impatience of the young. I'd rather not fight in this corridor–I find it far too restrictive. After all, in the off-chance that you do kill me, I'm sure you'd rather not have to clean the bloodstains off of your family's castle."

"One of my family's castles," Celice corrected.

Alvis narrowed his eyes. "You still cling to the claim that Deirdre is your mother?"

"I stick to that claim because it is the truth, Alvis," Celice responded.

"That is simply not possible," Alvis said. "Records show that your mother disappeared just outside Agusty nearly twenty years ago. It was around that time that I found Deirdre near Barhara. It is impossible to travel from Agusty to Barhara in such a short period of time."

"Your son certainly seems capable of such a feat," Celice said. "I've seen him three times over the past year, and each time he appeared and departed through means of warping. I saw him once in Conote, once in Thracia, and once a few days ago, in Miletos. Who's to say my mother isn't capable of warping . . . or being warped by someone else?"

"You're right about one thing–the need of words has expired." Alvis frowned. "Now, if you would follow me, I will lead you to the area of the castle in which we will fight."

-4-

Celice followed Alvis through the corridors of the castle. They eventually came to a halt atop the highest tower. Celice narrowed his eyes. "Are you sure you want to fight here?"

"I can think of no better place," Alvis replied. "There is plenty of room here to maneuver, unlike the corridor, where we would essentially be forced to fence."

"What need have you of fencing?" Celice asked. "Your specialty has always lied with fire magic. You are, after all, descended from the crusader Fala. Not only that, but you are also a descendant of Bishop Myra."

"So are you, if your claim really is true," Alvis replied.

"But unlike you, I don't have a drop of Loptous blood in my veins," Celice responded.

"Anyway, what you say is true," Alvis said. "I am a member of Velthomer's main family, and as such, have at my disposal the full power of the crusader Fala. However, I find this will be unnecessary to defeat you." He threw back his cloak, revealing a thick set of armor and a shield strapped to his back. Alvis strapped the shield to his left forearm and drew a silver blade from the scabbard on his left hip. "While your claim about your mother's identity is dubious at best, your claim of your father's identity is genuine. As such, you are remarkably proficient with swords. However, I will show you that I don't need the holy blood of a sword-wielding crusader to defeat you, a person with the full power of the crusader Baldo, with a sword."

Celice drew his own sword, though he opted for his father's silver sword. "If you insist." With that, both warriors charged.

Both warriors opted for the same swing, which led to their swords crossing. Each warrior held his sword with both hands, in an attempt to land a vertical strike. After this initial exchange, Celice leaped backward and assumed a stance. Alvis charged at the prince and swung his sword horizontally at a height that would allow him to catch Celice in the neck. However, Celice raised his sword to block the strike and used the opportunity opened by Alvis's recoil to lunge forward. However, Alvis brought up his shield and blocked the thrust. Celice jumped back, ducking under Alvis's next cut in the process. Celice then dashed forward and swung downward with his blade, though Alvis was able to block with his sword. Alvis pushed up against Celice's sword, pushing Celice himself back in the process. He then swung his sword around and thrust it at his opponent. However, Celice quickly turned sideways and let the sword pass by him. He then went in for a thrust of his own, but Alvis quickly sidestepped it. He was unable to avoid it completely, but the result was nothing more than a minor cut.

Both warriors stepped back. "Impressive," Alvis growled. "You landed the first strike."

"Who lands the first strike is irrelevant," Celice replied. "It's who lands the last strike that's important."

"Yes, I can see Prince Shanan teaching you something like that." Alvis then assumed a stance. "Enough talk! Let us continue!"

-4-

The Roten Ritter had been completely wiped out by Celice's forces, which were now gathered at the entrance to the castle. They all had their orders to not interfere, but they could not quell their anxiety or wish to help.

Nanna looked down at the head of her horse. "I feel so helpless. I just wish there was some way I could help Celice."

Leaf, who now had a horse of his own, rode up to Nanna's side. "Don't bother worrying yourself over things like that."

Nanna turned toward Leaf. "You know, ever since Alster you've been cold toward Celice. He's your cousin, isn't he?"

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean I have to approve of everything he does or spend half my time worrying about his well-being," Leaf shot back. "Though he apparently has you to do that for him."

"I–oh, my _God_!" Nanna exclaimed. "You're hung up on _that_? Celice is my friend. Understand?"

"Seemed more than friends at the fountain," Leaf replied.

Nanna's eyes flared up with anger. "You mean to tell me you were _spying_ on us?"

"Oops." Leaf turned white.

"'Oops' doesn't cut it!" Nanna shouted. "Like I just told you, there is nothing more between Celice and myself! And you have _no right whatsoever_ to be spying on me! Besides, you're not my father, so why does it matter to you who I show interest in?"

"Wait, so you do have some interest?"

"I said Celice is a friend, Leaf!" Nanna exclaimed. However, as she spoke, a blush crept into her cheeks. "And I think you owe Celice an apology for the way you've been treating him! I'm certain that Prince Cuan would have been quite upset with you were he here! And until you do apologize, I don't want to talk to you or even see you! Do I make myself clear?" With that, she stormed off.

-4-

Celice and Alvis broke apart again, both sweating. However, along with sweat for Alvis came a few trickles of blood. Celice had managed to cut Alvis a few more times, while he himself was unscathed. "I don't know about you, Alvis, but I'm tired of holding back." With that, Celice sheathed his silver sword and pulled out the other sword attached to his belt.

Alvis smiled. "So I see you have finally found your family's sacred blade. Excellent." Alvis then sheathed his own sword, walked over to his cloak, and pulled out a red tome of magic. "If you had not had Tyrfing in your possession, I would have refused to even show you the cover of this Falaflame tome. Now, we can have a battle truly worthy of the legacy of the crusaders."

"Only for the fact that one of us is betraying his ancestors," Celice replied. "I don't know about you, but I want to end this fight as soon as we can."

"I see," Alvis said. "Nervous, are we?"

"Of course not," Celice replied. Though this seemed like a mere bluff, it was true. Celice was surprised to find himself perfectly calm and unafraid. This only worked to increase Celice's chances of victory–if he was too nervous, he would be bound to make a mistake, and against the emperor, mistakes were fatal.

"What are you waiting for? Come." Alvis beckoned him forward. "I'll even give you the first attack." Celice dashed forward at full speed and let loose with a horizontal slash aimed at Alvis's waist. Alvis, however, moved to the side, and while the sword still cut into his waist, it was a minor wound. It would probably require a strong healer, but Alvis could still fight capably.

Alvis grinned, and Celice could see a predatory look in the emperor's eyes. "Too bad, Celice, but that just wasn't enough." He then raised his right hand. "FALAFLAME!"

Celice leaped backward as far as his leg muscles would propel him, but it was not enough to evade the attack. A stream of flame arced through the air from the floor at Alvis's feet, through Celice, and into the ground behind him. At the same time, heat flowed into Celice's body from all directions, and burned away at his nervous system.

Celice screamed in agony. It felt as if his entire body were on fire, but at the same time, he was not burning. However, as quickly as it had started, the heat left his body. While Celice's body returned to its normal temperature, though, the pain lingered. Celice clenched his teeth and held Tyrfing before him. He knew that the blade was the sole reason he had not been burned beyond recognition, though he also knew that he could not take another hit, with or without the sword of Baldo in his hands.

"That didn't feel good, did it?" Alvis asked. "Don't worry, though. The next attack will kill you before you experience that much pain."

Celice remained expressionless, but deep down, he knew Alvis was right. _There's no way I can survive one more attack, and I don't think I can evade it, either. Sorry, everyone. I've failed you all._ However, immediately after he had this thought, a flashback floated into his memory.

-4-

_Celice nodded, but continued to stare at the map. Nanna looked at him, puzzled. "You're worried about facing Emperor Alvis, aren't you?"_

_Celice hung his head. "Yes. I have heard how lethal he is. His Falaflame is powerful enough to burn his enemies to ashes with a single cast. Tyrfing will help to protect me, but I'm afraid I might not be strong enough to face my father's murderer yet."_

"_You can, Celice." Nanna put her hand on Celice's right shoulder. "Just believe in yourself, and you'll prevail. You're already one of our best warriors, even without a holy weapon. Now that you have Tyrfing, I can't see how anything or anyone could stop you."_

_Celice looked Nanna in the eyes. "You're right, Nanna. I won't get anywhere second-guessing my abilities." He rested his hand on Tyrfing's hilt. "Let's go. We need to take the home of my father and grandfather back from the clutches of the Empire, and no one–not even the emperor himself–will stand in my way."_

-4-_  
_

_Yes, that's right. I've got everyone depending on me. I can do this. I _will_ do this. I will go back and see Oifaye, Shanan, Lana, my other childhood friends, and Nanna again._ Celice felt something begin to flow through him. Celice chalked it up to confidence.

"Well, if you won't attack, then I'll just finish you off," Alvis said.

"I'd like to see you try," Celice replied. "You won't even be able to hit me."

"Tough words coming from someone whose entire nervous system is in ruins right now," Alvis remarked. "But nevertheless, I'll indulge you. After all, it'll bring this fight to its conclusion." He then raised his hand. "FALAFLAME!"

Celice instantly dashed to the left, but he had apparently overexerted his legs, as he found himself farther left than he had intended to run. However, it had its desired effect. The arc of fire that comprised Alvis's attack was off to his right. However, what Celice saw caught him off-guard.

Alvis was also surprised. "What? How did the attack go through him? That's . . . an afterimage! But how?" His shocked expression eased into a chuckle. "Of course. When Tyrfing's wielder is in mortal danger, it increases the wielder's natural speed and agility severalfold." He turned to face the true Celice. "Then I will simply have to aim better!" He raised his hand, but before he could cast the spell, Celice rushed in with his sword and thrust it at the emperor's chest. Alvis managed to get his shield up in time, but upon the strike, the shield shattered as if it were made of glass and the blade passed through Alvis's forearm.

Alvis screamed in pain as Celice pulled Tyrfing out of Alvis's arm and jumped back. Celice was in control, and he knew it. He had adjusted to the boost in speed that Tyrfing had granted him, and all Alvis could do was aim haphazardly and hope he hit.

This became Alvis's next strategy. He began casting Falaflame as rapidly as he could, making a maze of arcs that Celice would have to navigate if he wanted any chance at striking down the emperor. Celice moved to the left of one arc, dashed forward, then juked to the right to avoid another arc. He then saw three arcs headed at him, so he dived to the left, rolled along the ground, and leaped back up to his feet. Within moments, he was within striking distance. Alvis tried to get off one more cast, but he was too slow. Celice thrust his sword forward, though Alvis shifted at the last moment. What was a blow aimed at Alvis's heart penetrated through his right lung instead. Nevertheless, it was a fatal wound, and Alvis fell to all fours as Celice pulled Tyrfing from his body.

Alvis clenched his teeth and said through the pain, "Well done, Celice . . . I commend you . . . "

Celice walked over to Alvis. "Damn . . . I had hoped to avoid making you suffer in your final moments."

Alvis tried to laugh, but began coughing. "Merciful even to the man who killed your father?"

"I'm fairly certain I know the truth, Alvis," Celice replied. "You were never the mastermind behind the formation of the Grandbell Empire. That was all Manfloy's doing."

"You would be correct, Celice," Alvis said, his voice shaking. "Manfloy is the mastermind even now. He's the reason I have no control any more and was forced to fight you. Also, I should tell you . . . As you might suspect, I collected Tyrfing after the Battle of Barhara. However, Palmark did not steal it. I gave it to him."

"What?" Celice exclaimed. "Why?"

"I knew that even if I stopped you, I would be killed by the Lopt Sect so that my son could take the throne and revive the Lopt Empire," Alvis replied. "If I have to die, I prefer to die in battle."

"Are you saying you let me win?" Celice asked.

"Let you win? Ha! Celice, I gave this fight my all . . . " Alvis then coughed some more, and blood came up. "Also, about Deirdre . . . now that I think about it, there is a way you can prove your heritage. You see, Deirdre knew a lullaby–a very specific one, that no one else had ever heard. She used to sing that to the twins every night. If you truly are a son of Deirdre, you would know that lullaby . . . "

Celice closed his eyes and began to sing. The calm, serene melody reached Alvis's ears, and as it did, tears formed in his eyes. "There is no doubt about it . . . That is the melody that Deirdre used to sing . . . " Alvis paused for a moment, then spoke again. "Celice, I must tell you something about how I met Deirdre . . . She was unconscious on royal territory, but Manfloy guided me to her . . . "

Celice's blood ran cold. "It was Manfloy. Manfloy is responsible for my mother's disappearance and amnesia! Damn him!"

Alvis nodded. "Celice, I had no idea that Sigurd and Deirdre were married . . . If I had known, I would not have married her myself . . .

"Finally, Celice, there is one more thing I must ask of you . . . " Alvis was on his stomach on the floor now, with blood oozing from the corner of his mouth. "Julia . . . Protect Julia . . . "

Celice's eyes widened. "How do you know Julia?"

Alvis laughed weakly. "Of course I know her . . . She's my daughter . . . Please give Levin my thanks for protecting her all these years . . . "

"What?!" Celice exclaimed. "Then that makes her my half-sister . . . " He then shook his head. "Where is Julia? She disappeared before our charge against Chronos!"

"Manfloy . . . " Alvis answered. "Manfloy took her . . . Please . . . Keep my daughter safe . . . !"

Celice nodded. "I will, but it will not be for your sake. I would have watched over Julia even if you had not asked."

Alvis chuckled. "Yes, I can see that you're not one to do favors for a man who killed your family . . . "

"At the same time, Alvis, I bear no hatred for you," Celice said. "You were a victim in this whole affair, as well."

"Good . . . " Alvis said. "Save that anger for Manfloy . . . You'll need it against him . . . " He paused again. "Celice . . . You must win the upcoming battle . . . If you don't . . . well, I don't want to think about what will happen if you don't . . . Just win . . . for . . . the sake . . . of . . . the . . . peo . . . ple . . . " Alvis's eyelids drooped, and his torso sagged one last time.

Celice turned away from Alvis's body and looked off to the south. From his vantage point, he could see the shoreline. He could see the sun, now but a red orb in the sky, setting below the horizon and reflecting off the water. "It's beautiful . . . " Celice said to himself. As he watched, he thought he saw something that should have been impossible. He could see two figures on the beach. Both wore white clothing, though of different styles. One wore the white garments of a Grandbell Holy Knight, with black chest armor and a blue cape. The other wore long, flowing robes of white and silver, which accentuated the long, silver hair of the wearer. Celice squinted. "Father? ...Mother?" The next thing he knew, he found himself leaving the castle and running down toward the beach. Looking around, however, he saw nothing. After a moment, he began to wonder why he came down here, when he heard a voice.

"Celice . . . Celice . . ."

Celice looked around, wildly. "Who's there? Who's calling me?"

"Oh, how you've grown, Celice . . ."

"Mother?!" Celice blurted out. "Mother, is that you?"

As if on cue, a form materialized before him. Standing before him, albeit translucent, was Deirdre. She gave her son a warm smile, and Celice's eyes widened. "I see Levin and the others have done a fine job with you. You're so strong, healthy, and handsome. Remember to be thankful for all the people in your life, my dear son."

Celice, in a stupor, nodded. "I–I will, Mother. Also, I have good news. Emperor Alvis is dead, by my hands. I have avenged Father's death."

The smile faded from Deirdre's face. ". . . I see. And what of Julius and Julia?"

"I . . . I don't know," Celice replied. "Do you know where they are?" Deirdre, however, remained silent. ". . . Mother?"

"Celice . . ." came another voice, and a second form began to materialize. Deirdre was joined by the spirit of Sir Sigurd.

"Wha . . . Father? Is that you, Father?" Celice said.

"Celice," Sigurd began, "do not let Alvis's death go to your head. It was not your hand alone that defeated him."

This confused Celice. "Father, what is that supposed to mean?"

"Get to know the people's sorrow, Celice," Sigurd continued. "Your reality and theirs are still worlds apart. If you can't accomplish this, then this whole war will have been for naught." Then, the forms of Celice's parents began to fade.

Celice held out a hand, hoping to stop them. "Wait, Father! Please wait!"

It was no use. Celice's parents completely faded from sight. However, he heard from his mother one more time:

"Take care of yourself, my son . . ."

Celice, hand still outstretched, slumped to his knees. He then put his hands on the sand and hunched over as the tears began to flow. He understood perfectly well that the war was not over, but tonight that would not matter. For now, all that mattered was letting his emotions free.


	5. Chapter 5

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Fire Emblem, nor do I own the characters in Fire Emblem. I do, however, own any characters I create for the purpose of this story.

When Swords Cross

CHAPTER FIVE

Celice stood outside the gate to Freege, once again awaiting a scout. As he waited, he reflected upon everything that happened after he had killed Alvis. The Grandbell military was quick to mobilize, and all of the lords had assembled their armies to invade Chalphy. First, Celice's forces took Edda, then staved off the attack of Lord Brian of Dozel and his Grauen Ritter and seized Dozel. After this, they were caught in a pincer strike. Lady Hilda, Blume's widow, led the Gelben Ritter to the north, and Lord Scorpio of Jungby, and Lester, Lana, Patty, and Faval's cousin, led the Beige Ritter toward them from the south. Fortunately, Celice's army were able to use the heavily-wooded terrain around them to their advantage and were successful in wiping out both groups. They then moved north and seized Freege. As Celice waited, he could see Altenna and Fee flying in from a distance. Several minutes later, they landed in front of Celice. However, the prince knew that something was very, very wrong from the looks on their faces.

"Celice, this is the worst I've ever seen it," Altenna said. "First of all, Ishtar is headed this way."

Celice sighed. "Again? This will be the third time we fight her."

"And she's not alone," Fee added. "She's got three pegasus knights with her, and I recognize them. Their names are Bleg, Meng, and Maybell, and they are ruthless mercenaries."

Celice winced. "Is that it?"

Fee shook her head. "No, we have problems to the south, too. Prince Arion of Thracia has appeared with a squad of dragon knights and is headed toward Chalphy."

"What?!" Celice exclaimed. "Our defenses won't be able to hold off Arion and his men, and we can't get there in time!"

"Let me go, Celice," Altenna said. "I grew up with Arion and know him better than anybody else. I'm sure I can convince him to abandon his current mission."

"Do that, and tell Lana that I want her to warp you back to Chalphy," Celice said. Altenna then departed to look for Lana, and Celice looked at Fee. "Please tell me that that's it."

Sadly, Fee shook her head. "This is the worst part. Julia is headed this way, but she's not . . . normal."

"Not normal?" Celice asked. "What do you mean?"

"It's like she's possessed or something. Hypnotized, maybe," Fee said. "But she's cooperating with Imperial troops."

Celice hung his head. He had been adamant about saving Julia, but now, he had begun to wonder if that was even possible. "What about Velthomer Castle? Have you found out who's guarding it?"

Fee nodded. "The person in Velthomer is none other than Archbishop Manfloy himself."

Celice rested his hand on Tyrfing's hilt. "I see. I bet he's responsible for what's happened to Julia."

-5-

Celice pointed at a map on the table. This map showed northern Grandbell–to be more specific, it showed the dukedoms of Freege and Velthomer, as well as the Imperial capital at Barhara.

"Here's the plan. Lord Aless, Prince Shanan, Prince Sety, and myself will serve as the front lines. We will intercept Lady Ishtar and the pegasus knights. Behind us will be Prince Faval, Lester, Arthur, and Tinny. While we keep the enemy occupied, they will strike from afar with their arrows and magic, respectively.

"After they are taken out of the way, we have to do something about Princess Julia. We cannot kill her, but if we leave her unchecked, she could kill us. Now, Lana has a Silence Staff, and Corple has a Sleep Staff. They will be responsible for incapacitating Princess Julia. Meanwhile, Lord Aless and I will go straight for the source of Princess Julia's ailment. Over in Velthomer Castle is Archbishop Manfloy himself. As we all know, the archbishop is an extremely powerful practitioner of dark magic. Since Lord Aless and I are the best-equipped for dealing with dark mages, we will go alone. After Manfloy dies, the spell on Princess Julia should be broken."

"Just the two of you?" Nanna asked. "That's too dangerous, Prince Celice. Let me accompany you."

"Why do you wish to come with us?" Celice asked.

"You'll more than likely need a healer," Nanna answered. "Now, I admit that I am far from being the best healer here, but time is of the essence. I'm the only one who can keep up with the two of you."

Celice sighed. He felt it was too dangerous for Nanna, but he knew he could not afford to waste time arguing with her–she was far too stubborn for that. "Very well." He then looked around at everyone else. "One final thing. Under no circumstances are you to approach Barhara. Do I make myself clear?" When no one responded negatively, he nodded. "All right, let's go!"

-5-

Night had begun to fall, and Celice, Nanna, and Aless set up camp for the night. They had had a particularly rough day, but they were successful in defeating Ishtar and the pegasus knights. They had also received word from Chalphy that Altenna had managed to persuade Arion into fighting alongside her, though he refused to join Celice's army directly. Celice sent word to Altenna to stay south of Barhara until Velthomer was under their control, and since Altenna was complying, so was Arion.

Celice, Nanna, and Aless were all sitting around a campfire, their tents and their horses behind them. Each of them had packed a small, one-person tent, since none of them could carry anything larger.

"So, Celice, what exactly is the plan?" Aless asked.

"Well, here's what I've come up with," Celice responded. "According to our reconnaissance information, the dark mages guarding Velthomer are all armed with Hel magic."

Aless frowned. All dark magic was fearsome, but Hel was most noted for weakening its target to the point that a superficial cut could kill them. "But Manfloy won't leave the castle, will he?"

"No, but that doesn't mean we're safe," Celice replied. "Manfloy is armed with Fenrir magic."

"Perfect," Aless grumbled. Fenrir was a type of magic that could strike enemies across great distances. With that in his possession, and the dark mages armed with Hel around the castle, he could pick off intruders before they ever had the chance to enter the castle.

"Anyway, what we need to do is lure the dark mages around the castle out of range of Manfloy's Fenrir," Celice explained. "By now, we should all be familiar with Fenrir's range. However, that will take time.

"Our other option is to charge in and hope that we can either kill the dark mages before they have the opportunity to counterattack, or do our best to dodge the attacks. That will be quicker, but it's also more likely to fail."

"Well, it's not like Hel is particularly difficult for any of us to dodge," Aless said. "Anyway, what if the dark mages don't take the bait? Even if we tell them who we are, they might be able to keep their delusions of grandeur under control and hold their positions."

"Then we have no choice but to charge in," Celice replied. "However, there is one thing that will stay the same regardless of our plan of attack." He looked at Nanna. "Stay out of the enemy's attack range at all times. Only enter if one of us needs to be healed."

"What? Why?" Nanna asked.

"If either Aless or myself is hit with Hel, we'll be relying on you for survival. Neither of us could take on Manfloy until we heal. If you get yourself killed, and both of us get hit with Hel, we're doomed." Celice frowned. "I know you want to help. By following this plan, you'll be helping us by making sure we survive long enough to fight Manfloy."

Nanna sighed. "All right. But both of you please promise me that you'll be careful. Aless, you're my cousin, and Celice, you're one of the best friends I ever had. I don't want to see either of you die."

Both nodded. Celice had to struggle to keep a straight face, though. He was flustered from what Nanna had just said about him. However, at the same time, he was very pleased–more pleased than he would have expected himself to have been.

Celice looked into the fire. "Well, we'd better get some sleep. We'll need it for tomorrow."

-5-

The plan went without a hitch. The dark mages had sensed Celice and Aless's approach and had gotten anxious, and the entire group left the safety of Fenrir's range at once. When this happened, the two warriors had no trouble cutting them down. After that was done, the three warriors rode at top speed toward Velthomer. When they reached the gate, Celice dismounted. He then looked at Aless and Nanna. "I want you two to wait here. I will handle Manfloy."

Aless nodded. "Give him a wound for me."

"Be careful," Nanna said.

Celice turned around and charged into the castle. He made his way to the top of the tallest tower, where he found the archbishop waiting for him.

Manfloy was an old man, but he appeared far from fatigued by age. On the contrary, he seemed to have plenty of energy in his body. However, that was nothing compared to the aura of evil that could be almost seen radiating from his body. It caused Celice to break out into a cold sweat just from standing there.

Celice stared Manfloy down with the same glare he had given Alvis. This man who stood before him was singlehandedly responsible for everything that had gone wrong over the past two decades. He was responsible for Verdane's invasion of southern Grandbell. He was responsible for the death of King Imuka of Agustria and manipulating the next king, Shagaal. He was responsible for the manipulation of Langbart and Reptor into assassinating King Mananan of Isaac and Prince Kurth of Grandbell. He was responsible for Deirdre's disappearance and amnesia. He was responsible for the marriage between Alvis and Deirdre. He was responsible for manipulating Alvis into killing Sigurd and his army, as well as conquering the rest of Jugdral. He was responsible for Julia's current situation. He was even responsible for turning Prince Julius from a kind youth into a monster.

Finally, after a moment of silence, Celice spoke. "Archbishop Manfloy, I presume."

"And you are Prince Celice," Manfloy replied. "Trying to usurp what is rightfully your half-brother's."

"I know what you're trying to do," Celice replied. "Trying to control my emotions to control the battle. Save your breath–you'll need your energy to fight me."

"So I see," Manfloy said. "You're quite full of anger at me, and even more fearsome is your control of your anger." He chuckled. "However, it is no matter. Even if I die, you will be unable to stop Prince Julius–no, Emperor Galle the Eighteenth!"

Celice drew his blade. "As long as there is life in me, I will not allow the Lopt Empire to be reborn!" With that, he charged at the old priest. Manfloy, however, showed agility surprising for his age, and dodged Celice's initial strike with little difficulty.

Manfloy turned to Celice, raised his hand, and shouted, "YOTSMUNGAND!" Instantly, the area around them turned as dark as night, and phantom-like skulls soared through the air toward the prince. However, Celice showed his own agility in dodging the attack. He circled around and leaped. Manfloy tried to move out of the way, but was not fast enough to avoid taking a hit. A cut opened on his left shoulder.

Manfloy laughed. "I see you're not the descendant of the crusader Baldo for nothing! However, I have killed another holy weapon user in the past, and I'll do so again!"

"You lie!" Celice shouted. "You were the indirect cause of death for several, but you never killed any yourself!"

"Oh, that's where you're wrong, boy," Manfloy replied. "He was a powerful warrior, too. He was descended from the crusader Sety."

"That's where you're wrong!" Celice responded. "Levin is my advisor, and Sety is fighting under my leadership!"

This caught Manfloy off-guard. "How can Levin possibly be alive? I watched him die!"

"Then you were just sloppy!" Celice yelled as he leaped at his opponent. Manfloy was again able to avoid a fatal strike, but took another cut, this time to his right shoulder.

Manfloy began to panic a little. _The longer this fight continues, the stronger he gets! I need to do something . . . Ah, yes, of course._ Manfloy retreated to the wall near the door to the rest of the castle, and tapped the stone brick. The brick slid away, revealing an alcove. Manfloy reached in and pulled out a tome of dark magic. "This tome will be the end of you! AUSENSEITER!"

Celice saw no attack, but he felt it. His head suddenly became clouded with darkness, which threatened to consume him if he lingered. He could feel his muscles growing weaker. He knew that this was going to result in his death. As he began to lose consciousness, he could see two people in his mind. _Nanna, I'm sorry, but I won't be able to fulfill my promise. Julia . . . I'm sorry I couldn't do more for you. I can't even save my own sister . . . _

As these thoughts came to him, Celice leaped to his feet. He would make sure he did everything in his power to avoid letting his friends and family down. Running on a mix of Tyrfing's magic and adrenaline, he dashed at Manfloy, too quick for the archbishop to follow. In an instant, Celice had delivered three powerful strokes. Two strokes cut off Manfloy's arms, the other opened a deep wound in his head. The archbishop collapsed to the ground, dead. Celice sloppily put Tyrfing back in its scabbard, then began the long descent to the front gate.

-5-

Nanna leaped off her horse and ran as soon as she saw Celice go down. She dropped to her knees and propped Celice up with her arms. "Celice! Celice! No, wake up!"

"So . . . c-cold . . . "Celice muttered.

Nanna grabbed her staff and pressed it to Celice's heart. She was unfamiliar with the magic that was affecting Celice, but she could tell that it was draining his life away. She had to use her magic to keep restoring life energy at an equal or faster rate than the magic was draining it.

All the while, Celice was muttering. "It's cold . . . and so dark . . . I feel weak . . . " Suddenly, without warning, Celice started to thrash about. "Ahh! No! Get away! Get away, you vile monster! Keep away! Help! Help!"

Nanna began to panic. "Celice! Calm down, Celice! Calm down!" It was no use; Celice continued to thrash about and scream. Due to the violence with which Celice was convulsing, Nanna was unable to use her staff.

"Help! Someone, please help me! Father! Mother! Someone!" Tears began to stream down his face. "Mommy, help!"

Tears formed in Nanna's eyes, as well. _This is awful. Now he's crying for his mother._ Then, an idea formed in her head. _It's a long shot, but at this point, I'm on my last legs._ She brought the thrashing Celice as close to her body as she could bring him, closed her eyes, and began to sing.

The lullaby had an instant effect. Celice stopped thrashing and screaming. Instead, he said, " . . . Mommy? Mommy . . . " Nanna, still singing, pulled the unconscious prince closer to her body. "It's so warm . . . Mommy, don't leave me . . . "

Nanna reached the end of the lullaby, but to be safe, she went back to the beginning and continued to sing. As she did, she rested her staff on Celice's heart and let the energy flow into him. This continued for a few minutes, but Nanna had begun to feel fatigued. She was forced to stop singing, but thankfully, Celice remained quiet. She could still feel his pulse, though, so she knew that he was alive. As she continued for what seemed like hours, she began to feel lightheaded and her vision began to swim. Determined to keep Celice alive until help arrived, though, she continued on. However, she eventually drained all of her energy, and fell into unconsciousness herself. Thankfully, a few minutes later, help arrived.

-5-

Celice woke up and found himself in an unfamiliar bed in an unfamiliar room. No sooner had his eyes opened then he felt someone embrace him.

Nanna pulled away after a few moments, sobbing. "Oh, thank god you're all right! I was so worried!"

Celice sat up. "You stayed with me after I passed out, didn't you? It was you who sang me Mother's lullaby." Nanna nodded. Celice smiled. "Thank you. I owe you my life."

Nanna took a couple of deep breaths and was able to stop her sobbing. "I'd say that makes us even. After all, you saved my life in Conote."

"No, I didn't," Celice replied. "I just got you to someone who could save your life."

"How is that different from what I did?" Nanna asked.

Celice shrugged. "At any rate, I want to repay you for what you did, and I won't take no for an answer. What you did here was harder on you than what I did in Conote was on me."

"And what is this favor?" Nanna asked.

"Something you wish," Celice answered.

"There's nothing I want from you now, though," Nanna replied.

"Then later." Celice looked down at the sheets covering his legs. "I take it I'm in Velthomer?"

Nanna nodded. However, as soon as she had done so, Levin and Julia entered the room.

"Good, you're awake," Levin said. "I suppose now is as good a time to tell you as any. We have our report about Barhara."

Celice sat, listening. "Go on."

"There are twelve warriors, and from what we've seen, they appear to be immensely powerful," Levin said. "Legends of the Lopt Empire speak of a group of twelve so-called 'Demon Generals.' These would seem to be them.

"Also, Julius himself is guarding the castle. Not only is he armed with the Loptous tome, but he also has a Meteor spell at his disposal. That means we'll basically be fighting from the trees while our healers stand outside of Julius's range casting Physic and Fortify."

"I see," Celice said. "Have we found anything to deal with Julius?"

"We have," Levin replied, much to Celice's astonishment. "Locked away in the vault of this castle was a tome of light magic. This tome is named Narga, and was the holy tome used by Saint Heim himself."

"Which means that Julia can use it," Celice finished.

"Exactly," Levin said. "Narga itself is very powerful, but what sets it apart from the rest of the holy weapons is that it alone can penetrate the defenses that Loptous grants its wielder. Narga will do far more than scratch Julius."

Celice looked at Julia. "Julius is your twin brother. Are you sure you can kill him?"

Julia looked at the tome she was holding, then solemnly nodded. "Julius stopped being my brother the day that Manfloy gave him that evil tome."

-5-

A few days had passed since Celice seized Velthomer, and the battle for Barhara had begun. Celice's troops had defeated the twelve Demon Generals, and Celice walked up to the gate of Barhara. Standing inside the gate, his evil aura capable of being sensed for miles, stood Julius.

Celice glared at his younger half-brother. "Hello."

"Aren't you rude," Julius remarked. "One, when in my presence, you do not speak unless spoken to, and two, you are to always address me as 'Your Exaltedness' when in my presence."

"Aren't you conceited," Celice shot back. "You should know that I don't recognize you as the emperor of the Lopt Empire, or even as the king of Grandbell."

Julius's eyes narrowed. "You speak of your claim to the throne? Why don't you just drop that charade? It's physically impossible for Deirdre to have been your mother."

Celice did not respond. Instead, he began to sing his mother's lullaby. As he did, he watched the expression on Julius's face go from shock to rage.

"That lullaby . . . the only person who ever sang that was Deirdre." Julius clenched his teeth. "It's impossible . . . impossible . . . "

"It's quite possible, '_brother_,'" Celice responded. "Mother was in Agusty. Manfloy appeared, kidnaped her, and brainwashed her. He then warped her to Barhara. Also, weren't you ever taught to never call your mother by her name unless you were telling someone that she's your mother?"

"I refuse to acknowledge that woman as my mother," Julius replied.

"Because she was a descendant of Saint Heim?" Celice shot back. "It's not healthy to hold a grudge."

"And yet you exacted revenge on my father."

"I told Alvis as he died that I bore no ill will toward him," Celice replied. "However, for you, I only feel pity. I know you're not the real Julius. Drop the facade, Loptous."

"Fine!" Julius shouted. "LOPTOUS!"

The area around the two half-brothers turned black, and a dragon with black scales descended toward Celice. Fortunately, Celice was able to leap out of the way.

"You are mistaken, Loptous," Celice said. "You think I came here to do battle with you? I'm not about to fight a battle I can't win."

Julius narrowed his eyes. "So you come this far only to forfeit?"

"Now, when did I say I was abandoning this fight?" Celice replied. "I said that _I_ was not your opponent. However, someone else will fight you in my stead." With that, Julia entered the gate behind Celice.

Julius's eyes widened. "Why is she still alive? Manfloy, you damn fool!"

Celice stepped away and allowed his half-sister to advance.

"You think you can bring yourself to kill your own brother?" Julius asked.

"You're not my brother," Julia replied. "And I know that the only way to free him from your grasp is to kill him. I'm prepared to let him free." She then raised her hand. "NARGA!"

This time, the exact opposite of Julius's spell happened. Their surroundings turned white, and a white dragon rose from the ground. This time, the attack hit its mark, and Julius was sent flying backwards into a wall. He climbed to his feet, panting.

"Fine! I'll do now what I've been waiting a century to do! You will die at my hands this time, Narga!"

-5-

Celice stood back and watched the battle unfold. It looked less like two mages battling than it did two summoners, each with a polar opposite dragon with which they attacked. Finally, after what seemed hours, the white dragon plunged through Julius's chest, leaving a fatal wound behind.

Julius fell to one knee, his hands clutching the wound. "Urgh . . . Narga . . . You've ruined . . . everything . . . again . . . " With that, he fell face-first to the ground, dead. That was not the end, though. From Julius's body rose a formless cloud of darkness. The darkness soon took shape, and a black dragon floated over Julius's corpse. As Celice watched, the dragon began to disintegrate from the head down. After the dragon had disappeared altogether, Celice fell to all fours and vomited on the floor due to the disturbing spectacle he had just witnessed.

Julia walked over and began to gently rub Celice's back. Once Celice's stomach had emptied itself, he stood up, trembling. "It's over . . . " he breathed. "We've won . . . "

-5-

Still fatigued, Celice stood in front of the throne in Barhara Castle, and watched Levin approach him. "Well done, Celice. You've made your parents proud."

"Maybe so," Celice said, "but our job isn't done yet. The continent is in shambles. It's up to us to set everything right."

"I couldn't agree more, Celice," Levin replied. "Which is why you must become the new king of Grandbell."

This took Celice aback. Yes, he was a prince, but he had never given any serious thought to becoming king. "...Me? King of Grandbell?"

"That's right," Levin replied. "You and Julia are the only heirs to the throne left. It's up to you to lead Grandbell into the future."

"I understand," Celice nodded.

"As do I," Julia said from Celice's side. "I'll do everything I can to support Prince–no, my brother."

"Well, I'd say everyone else will be coming back in due time," Levin said. As if on cue, Prince Shanan appeared in the hallway.

"Celice, I'm returning to Isaac," Shanan said.

"Shanan . . . I can't possibly thank you enough," Celice said.

"For what? It's my fault that you grew up without a mother," Shanan said.

Celice stood up. "Shanan, stop right there. Stop focusing on what ifs and focus on what you've accomplished and have yet to accomplish. It's because of you that I'm still here today."

"You are too kind, Celice," Shanan said. However, Celice could note that there was no air of disappointment about him any more.

No sooner had Shanan left than Leaf appeared. He refused to bring his eyes up, however. "Celice . . . I owe you an apology. I've been such an idiot, and have treated you with contempt because of it."

"Leaf, look at me." Leaf lifted his eyes. "I understand, and accept your apology. However, I'm not going to look down on you for it. I still see you as my equal, my cousin, and most importantly, my friend. Our fathers held a strong bond, and I wish that to continue with us. If you ever need help, you only need to ask. I will personally come to your aid."

"And I yours," Leaf said. "My road will be a harsh one, though. I will be responsible for uniting all of Thracia. Any help I can get will be greatly appreciated."

Celice nodded. "It's up to us to rebuild the continent."

Leaf then left, and Aless entered. He dropped to one knee before Celice. "Aless, get up. You need not lower yourself before an equal."

Aless rose. "Yes, you're right. It is up to me to take leadership in Agustria. Also, thank you."

"For what?"

"For showing me the truth. I know now what kind of man your father really was. He remained a steadfast friend to my father until the very end. It's up to us to continue that relationship."

"I agree," Celice said. "May our friendship remain as eternal as time itself."

Before Aless could leave, Nanna entered. "Celice, I'll be accompanying Aless to Agustria."

"Really? You're not going back to Lenster?"

Nanna shook her head. "I have no desire to return to Lenster."

"Well, thank you for everything you've done, Nanna," Celice replied. "If it weren't for you, I'd be lying on the ground dead outside Velthomer."

"I can say the same to you," Nanna replied. Before she left, however, she kissed Celice on the cheek.

Celice brushed his fingers over the spot where Nanna had kissed him. For some reason, she had seemingly taken a piece of him with her when she departed. He was disappointed that she had not asked to stay here. However, he quickly shook that off.

Oifaye approached Celice. "Well, Your Highness, I will be returning to Chalphy."

"What? Why?"

"Your Highness, I am not abandoning you," Oifaye replied. "As a lord of Chalphy, I will continue to remain an advisor, only now it will be in court."

Celice nodded. "I understand. Take especially good care of Chalphy. It was my father's home, after all."

"Of course." Oifaye bowed and exited.

One by one, the rest of Celice's troops approached him, with their plans. Skasaha and Lakche would accompany Shanan back to Isaac, and Delmud would go with his cousin and his sister to Agustria. Faval and Patty would travel to their father's land of Verdane. Johan would assume the title of Lord Dozel, Corple would take over Edda with his sister beside him, Arthur would go to Velthomer, and Tinny to Freege. Altenna, Fin, and Hannibal would accompany Leaf back to the Thracian Peninsula. Lester would assume the title of Lord Jungby, with his sister aiding him. Sety and Fee would return to Silesia, but Levin refused to go with them.

Finally, all that remained was Levin himself. "Well, Celice, I must say good-bye. I am off on a journey of my own."

"Thank you for everything you've done, Levin," Celice said. "All this time, you watched over us."

"I only did what I had to do," Levin replied. "I am but the wind. It is my duty to bring the warmth of the light to the world. And that light comes from the hearts of each and every one of you–especially you, Celice."

"Yes, I understand now," Celice said. "I've always heard that dragonkind fears involvement in the world of man . . . but you're different. You broke that rule. You guided us. Myself, everyone, everything on this earth, will never forget the debt we owe you, Levin . . . no . . . Holsety of the Wind . . . "


	6. Chapter 6

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Fire Emblem, nor do I own the characters in Fire Emblem. I do, however, own any characters I create for the purpose of this story.

When Swords Cross

CHAPTER SIX

Celice looked at the calendar. Today marked, to the date, one full year since the victory at Barhara. Unfortunately, this past year had been every bit as difficult as the year before it–the only difference was that people's lives were not on the line with every decision he made. He had to distribute supplies to ravaged villages, quell uprisings, and perform all sorts of hard physical labor. To top things off, those were the easy duties.

Aside from the various nobles in charge of Grandbell's six dukedoms, the court that had served both King Azmur and Emperor Alvis had remained largely intact. That was both a good and bad thing. It was good because it meant that fewer people had died. It was bad because of what they wanted. To avoid any further complications with lineage, they constantly insisted that Celice marry and produce an heir as soon as possible. As things were, Julia would assume the throne if something were to happen to Celice. However, the court officials would not be happy until Celice was married with a suitable heir.

Thankfully, though, Celice had backup. Those who helped push back when the rest of the court pushed were Princess Julia, Lord Oifaye of Chalphy, Lord Lester of Jungby, Lord Arthur of Velthomer, High Priest Corple of Edda, Lord Johan of Dozel, and Lady Tinny of Freege.

-6-

Celice looked at the men standing before him and suppressed a frown. None of his supporters were in court today. The men of the court were again talking about finding a wife. Celice had to avoid wincing at the memory of the last time a gathering had been formed for that purpose. He hated those events, and could tell that most women were there for a shot at Celice's money or power. Therefore, it came as a pleasant surprise when a messenger interrupted the meeting.

The messenger bowed to Celice. "Your Majesty, I bring news from Agustria. King Aless has sent someone to represent Agustria in Grandbellian court. The representative will be arriving within the hour."

Celice smiled. Regardless of whom this representative was, it would take the focus off of the subject of a bride, and that was a welcome distraction. "Thank you for informing me. I will begin preparations for the representative's arrival shortly."

-6-

Celice stood in front of his throne, waiting for the Agustrian representative. When the representative walked into the room and kneeled before him, he nearly fell over. "Y-you can rise."

Nanna rose to her feet and smiled. "Hello, Your Majesty. It has been a long time since we last saw each other."

Celice hastily nodded. "Yeah. Today marks the one-year anniversary of the war's end."

One of the council members spoke up. "We welcome you, Lady Nanna, to the city of Barhara."

"Thank you, sir," Nanna replied.

Celice looked around and found himself disgusted with what he could see from the council members. He knew these men well, and they were all old perverts. He could tell by small details on each council member's face that they were all looking lustfully at the Nodion princess. This filled him up with an unusual anger. However, Celice was able to conceal this, and cleared his throat. "I think, due to the arrival of our guest, that it would be best to dissolve the council for the day. She just traveled a great distance, so I think she would be best off with a day of rest."

Disappointment crossed each council member's face. "Very well, Your Majesty," the council leader said. He then turned to Nanna. "Princess Nanna, might I inquire where you are staying?" However, before Nanna could respond, Celice jumped in.

"I would much like her to stay here, in the palace," Celice said. "After all, she is a guest, and I would like to be as hospitable as possible."

"Your Majesty, I do not wish to--" Nanna began, but Celice cut her off.

"You won't be imposing, Nanna. It is not a problem at all. Quite the contrary–I'm certain the staff and Princess Julia would be more than happy to have a guest in the palace."

"All right, then," Nanna replied. "I think I will need a tour of the palace, though."

"Very well," the council leader said. "I will arrange--"

"I'd be more than happy to give you a tour, Nanna," Celice said. He then turned to the council. "Your day is done. It's time for you all to leave."

The council members stood up, bowed to the king, and left. After they left, Celice turned to Nanna and beamed. "It's been far too long, Nanna."

"I should say the same, Your Majesty," Nanna replied.

"No formalities outside of court, please, Nanna," Celice said. "You were the one who said I was your friend, remember? Besides, I could never think of making the person who saved my life address me so formally all the time."

"So, how have things been going for you here?" Nanna asked.

Celice frowned. "Rough. I'm not referring to just reparations, either. It's dealing with those old men that drives me insane. It's not as bad when the other lords are around, but it's still taxing. How about you? How have you been?"

"Busy," Nanna replied. "So far, most of my time has been spent repairing Agustria and supporting my brother and my cousin. This assignment will probably be the least physically demanding thing I do."

"I've missed you." The words were out of Celice's mouth before he realized that he was speaking, and he instantly wished that he could call them back. He turned red.

Nanna looked at him with surprise, a faint blush creeping across her face. She then composed herself and said, "The council is that rough on you, are they? You have my sympathy."

Celice took a deep breath. As far as he was concerned, a disaster had just been averted. "Uh, so, tour, right? Come on, just follow me."

-6-

Celice led Nanna to a door located in a hallway upstairs. "This is where you will be staying." He opened the door and led his guest in. Inside the room was a large canopy bed with pure white sheets, a dresser with numerous drawers, a large mirror that rested atop the dresser, and a door on the far side of the room.

Nanna looked around. "This looks very nice," she said. "This is even bigger than my quarters in Agusty. What's behind the other door?"

Celice smiled as he walked over to the door. "I think you'll like this," he said. He opened the door and walked through. Nanna followed him and let out a gasp.

Nanna found herself standing on a marble balcony. Below her, stretching out in all directions, lay a large garden. It had stone pathways lined with hedges, patches of flowers in every variety, a patch of grass with several wooden benches, and a large fountain in the center.

Celice grinned. "What do you think?"

Nanna, her hands over her mouth and her eyes wide, replied, "It's gorgeous!" She then turned to Celice. "Take me down there! Now!"

Celice raised his hands. "Okay, okay, calm down! I was planning on showing you the garden next anyway."

-6-

Celice led Nanna up to the fountain. It was made entirely of marble, and was sculpted in the form of the Twelve Crusaders. In the center was Heim. Around him were the crusaders Baldo, Neir, Ulir, Blagi, Fala, and Tordo. Around and a level below them stood Hezul, Odo, Dain, Noba, and Sety. Water sprayed from each crusader's weapon, except for the mages, who all shot water from their outstretched hands.

"It looks so much bigger from down here than it did from the balcony," Nanna commented. "But it's still amazing. I can't possibly imagine the amount of effort it probably took to sculpt such a thing."

"I'm amazed it survived the Imperial years," Celice remarked. "I'm sure Alvis would have wanted it to remain intact, but I'm surprised that Julius never destroyed it. I would have figured that he would try to purge any influence of the crusaders from the continent." Then, from behind them, Celice heard a gasp. He and Nanna turned around to find Julia standing behind them.

"Nanna!" Julia exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

Nanna smiled. "Hello, Julia. I'm here as a representative to Agustria in Grandbell's court. Celice has invited me to stay here."

"I see," Julia said. "Well, it's nice to see you again! It's been about a year, hasn't it?"

"To the day," Celice said.

"Why weren't you with the rest of the council, Julia?" Nanna asked. "Aren't you supposed to be helping your brother?"

"I gave her the day off," Celice answered. "I knew that the council would just kiss up to her on the anniversary of our victory since it was she who killed Julius, and she hates dealing with the council under normal circumstances almost as much as I do. Today would have been almost unbearable for her, so I decided to spare her that misery."

"Well, aren't you thoughtful," Nanna remarked.

"Anyway, Celice, dinner is almost ready," Julia said.

"Ah, good," Celice replied. "I'm starving."

"I'd like nothing better than a nice, warm meal after my journey," Nanna said.

-6-

The next day, Celice sat with the council. This time, he was accompanied by Nanna and Julia.

"Hmm, apparently there are reports of bandit attacks along the eastern border," the chief council member said, as he read a report. "What is Lord Arthur doing?"

"Keep in mind that the Roten Ritter is still being rebuilt," Celice said. "It'll be a while before they're back to pre-Imperial strength. I'm sure Arthur is doing everything he can."

"That is relatively unimportant anyway," the council leader said.

Celice looked at him in disbelief. "Excuse me? We're supposed to protect our people. I was just about to offer a suggestion on the matter."

"That can wait," the council leader said. "Right now, we need to discuss a more urgent matter. Your Majesty, we have taken the liberty of setting up a ball in the palace here and inviting all of the nobles' daughters--"

"I DON'T BELIEVE THIS!" Celice shouted and leaped from his seat. "You're putting off bandit attacks for this stupid bridal search? How many times do I have to tell you to leave me to my own devices before it finally sinks in?!"

"Your Majesty, we have expressed our reasons for this before . . . " the council leader began, but Celice cut him off.

"Yes, I'm well aware of your reasoning for your list of priorities!" Celice replied. "But have you even once considered my list of priorities? No, of course not! You're all preoccupied with your personal safety! You can't learn how to do your jobs properly, it seems! We serve and protect the people, not the other way around! Not only did you neglect to inform my prime minister of this council meeting yet again, but you're constantly talking about needing an heir to the throne! In case you've forgotten, the current heir is sitting on my right! But no, you refuse to acknowledge a woman as heir to the throne of our country! You all make me sick!"

"Your Majesty, if you'd please calm down, we have business to attend to," one of the council members began, but Celice cut him off.

"YOU HAVEN'T BEEN LISTENING TO A WORD I'VE SAID!" Celice yelled. "You know what? I don't need you to solve the bandit problem. I was going to send my troops anyway. So, all of you–get out of my sight, NOW! Any of you who isn't out of this palace in ten minutes is spending the night in the dungeon! Do I make myself clear?!"

"But Your Majesty--" the council leader began.

"DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?!" Celice repeated.

"Yes, Your Majesty . . . " With that, the council members began to leave the room. Celice ran out of a side door.

Nanna sat in her chair, shocked by what just happened. She had never seen Celice fly into such a rage. He was usually capable of controlling his anger. She then got up and started to follow the other council members, when a hand grabbed her by the wrist.

"He didn't mean you," Julia said. "You can stay. You did nothing wrong."

Nanna hung her head. "I've never seen him like this . . . "

"It was building up for a while," Julia said, the sadness apparent in her voice.

"I'm going to go look for him," Nanna declared.

"I don't know if that's a good idea," Julia replied.

"I don't care," Nanna responded. "I want to help him."

Julia looked at Nanna, her head tilted slightly. "You like him, don't you?"

"What?" Nanna's face turned red. "N-no, that's not it, I just want to help my friend out."

Julia giggled. "Don't worry, your secret is safe with me."

"W-what secret?"

-6-

Celice leaped at the hanging bag and gave it two strikes with his practice sword. He then pulled back and thrust it into the bag. For several minutes he struck at the bag with his training sword.

Nanna and Julia then entered the room. "Ah, here you are," Nanna said.

Celice stopped and turned to look at the two girls. "Leave me be. I need some time to myself."

Julia frowned. "Celice, it's not good to keep all your feelings bottled up inside. Please, we want to help."

Celice sighed and tossed his practice sword away. It landed cleanly in its rack on the wall. "Fine," he said. "I'm not too fond of going over how much of a jerk I was, but whatever."

"Celice, you shouldn't talk about yourself that way," Nanna said.

"Why not?" Celice shot back. "I'm an idiot, plain and simple. I shouldn't be here."

"Celice, stop talking like that!" Nanna responded.

Celice sat on a nearby bench. "I shouldn't be king." Tears began to flow from his eyes. "I should just disappear and let Julia take the throne. I'm not cut out for this."

Nanna sat down next to Celice. "That's not true, Celice."

"It is true!" Celice exclaimed. "Every day is stressful. I need to decide how to govern, how to react to various problems in the country. I have to send men to their deaths. I have to approve reconstruction projects. I have to deal with those . . . those old demons every day! And they conspire to make things worse for me! They always conveniently forget to inform Oifaye of these meetings, consider the other lords beneath them, and consider me some sort of . . . commodity!"

"Celice, get a hold of yourself!" Nanna exclaimed. "You are fit to be king."

Celice looked at her, tears still streaming down his face. "How can you be so sure?"

"Because I had the pleasure of serving under you during the war," Nanna replied. "You led an insurrection against insurmountable odds and prevailed, and with minimal casualties at that. Not one of your officers died in the war, Celice. Not one. Furthermore, all your battle plans worked. You're a brilliant leader."

"That's war," Celice replied. "That's totally different."

"No, it's not," Nanna replied. "Peacetime duties are simply a different application of the skills that won you the war."

"But I had help during the war," Celice argued. "I had Oifaye and Levin behind me at all times."

"Which is your problem now," Nanna said. "You're trying to do everything yourself. It's no wonder you're enduring so much stress."

"Well, then, what do you suggest?" Celice asked.

"Never hold a council without myself, Julia, and the other lords that fought under you," Nanna answered. "They have burdens to bear themselves, but when we share each other's burdens, the load becomes lighter and more bearable. Just look around, Celice. You have all the resources available to make you the greatest king that Grandbell . . . no, that Jugdral has ever known. It's up to you to use them. No one is going to delegate them for you, though. That is your responsibility."

Celice looked down. "You're right. I should be ashamed of myself for succumbing to despair. From now on, I won't let that council run my life. I should be running the council, not the other way around!" He then turned to Nanna. "And Nanna?"

"Yes?"

Celice leaned forward and wrapped his arms around Nanna, pulling her into a hug. "Thank you for being my friend."


	7. Chapter 7

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Fire Emblem, nor do I own the characters in Fire Emblem. I do, however, own any characters I create for the purpose of this story.

When Swords Cross

CHAPTER SEVEN

The next day, the council attempted to meet once again without notifying any of the dukes. In response, Celice acted upon Nanna's suggestion and dissolved the council, letting them know that he would not hold a single council unless the prime minister and at least half the dukes–or people they trusted enough to represent them–were present. They protested at first and tried to override him, but Celice did an excellent job in asserting himself and reminded them that _he_ was the king and that Grandbell was a monarchy, not an oligarchy.

However, there was one thing that the council had done that Celice could not undo, which is why a week later he found himself in his bedroom, changing his clothes. After a few minutes of rummaging, Celice decided on an outfit that was a variation of the Holy Knight dress uniform. It was a white outfit with gold and black trim, black cuffs, and black boots. It differed from the standard Holy Knight uniform in that it lacked chest armor. Instead, attached to the right shoulder was a half-cape that extended to roughly two inches above the floor. On a typical Holy Knight dress uniform, this cape would have been black; however, on Celice's, this cape was gold. After he picked it out, he spent a few minutes putting the uniform on, then when he had it on, he attached the scabbard that held Tyrfing to his belt. He then looked in the mirror and turned to each side once. When he turned to his left, he paused. The cape fell from his shoulder in a manner that resembled a gold waterfall that stopped two inches above the floor. Satisfied with the way he looked, Celice walked out of his room and found Julia standing outside the room.

"You like that outfit, don't you?" Julia commented. She herself was dressed in a modest silver dress that matched her hair color.

"I could say the same to you, dear sister," Celice replied. "Are you ready?"

"I wouldn't be standing here if I wasn't," Julia said. "In fact, I was ready before you were."

"Well, you had a head start," Celice responded. "Anyway, let's go. Our guests await."

-7-

"Presenting King Celice and Princess Julia!" a voice boomed from within the ballroom. Celice resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he and Julia entered. He was never fond of being the center of attention. He and Julia took their seats at the head of the table closest to the front of the room. Around him sat the other dukes. Oifaye, Lester, Johan, and Arthur wore similar outfits to Celice's, though their capes' colors were different–Oifaye's was blue, Lester's was yellow, Johan's was brown, and Arthur's was red. Tinny wore a purple dress of the same design as Julia's, and Corple wore a traditional high priest's garments.

Celice smiled at his friends. "Am I glad I'm seated with you as opposed to the rest of the council, like last time. Maybe this won't be so bad after all." He then noticed that one seat was empty. "Wait a second. Who is sitting in the empty seat?"

Oifaye, who sat next to the king, looked across the table. "That seat is reserved for Nanna. Where could she be?" Almost as if on cue, the same voice that introduced Celice and Julia boomed, "Princess Nanna of Nodion!"

Celice turned toward the double doors at the back of the ballroom and was rendered speechless by what he saw. Nanna was wearing a powder-blue dress that fell to her feet and exposed her shoulders and collarbones. She wore earrings that contained pearls, a necklace with an emerald in it, and purple-tinted gloves that extended past her elbows. Every now and then Celice could catch a glimpse of silver high-heeled shoes on her feet. She casually made her way to the table at the front of the ballroom and sat in the empty chair. "Hello, everyone," she said.

Celice struggled to find his voice. "W-welcome, Nanna. It was nice of you to join us." He then winced as he felt something hit his shin. Julia had kicked him. "Uh, you look great tonight, Nanna."

"Thank you," Nanna said, with a smile.

Celice turned to Oifaye. "What's on the itinerary?" he asked.

"Well, first we eat dinner," Oifaye began. "After that, you will take the floor and talk to the girls that the council has assembled for you to meet. You will then dismiss the girls you found to be least desirable." At this, Celice's eyes lit up. Oifaye frowned. "No, you're not allowed to dismiss all of them. No more than half." Celice's face fell, his loophole having been crushed. "After that, you must dance for at least one song with each girl."

Celice sighed. "Just how many girls are there this time?" he asked.

"Twelve," Oifaye replied.

"Well, that's better than past events," Celice remarked, looking depressed nonetheless.

"How many have there been at previous events?" Nanna asked.

"There were thirty at the last one," Corple answered. Celice looked down at his plate and turned red.

"That was a miserable time," Lester added.

"We were up until two o'clock in the morning because the councilors wanted His Majesty to dance with _every_ girl," Johan commented.

"And council meetings were suspended for a week afterward, because the combination of the constant dancing and staying up late weakened Celice and left him open to illness," Julia said. "He also had his feet in ice for a while, because all thirty girls were bad dancers."

Celice continued to stare a hole in his dinner plate, his face as red as the cape on Arthur's shoulder. Nanna watched him from across the table and realized just how bad it had been for the king. Celice looked up at Oifaye, and asked, "Is that all?"

"I'm afraid not," Oifaye replied. "You must choose among the girls you dance with one to live in the royal palace and to pose with for a picture."

"Well, this won't work, because Nanna is in the guest bedroom," Celice replied.

"They considered that, Your Majesty," Oifaye responded. "Nanna is to switch places with one of the girls."

Slowly, anger began to build within Celice. _So, they're trying to pawn one of their daughters off on me for prestige, _and_ take the opportunity to have Nanna in their residence. And it's too late for me to call off the whole thing. What am I going to do . . . ?_ At that point, dinner was served, and Celice ate, brainstorming the whole time.

-7-

Two hours later, Celice began to feel fatigued. He had just spent a few minutes speaking with each girl, and was on the twelfth, who was talking at that very moment.

"This bracelet is just simply gorgeous, isn't it? Of course it is, since it's the most expensive available. I only buy the most exquisite and expensive clothing and jewelry. Anything else is simply beneath me. I'm sure you can identify, being the king and all. You should be no stranger to the best, the most expensive."

"Uh . . . right," Celice said. However, his train of thought was completely different. _By god, if she becomes queen, she'll bankrupt the kingdom with her prodigal tendencies! She's definitely out of the question._ "Well, I think our time is up. It was nice to talk to you." _As long as I don't have to do so in the foreseeable future._

As the girl approached her seat, Celice stood up. "Well, I suppose it's time for me to eliminate six girls," he said.

"Your Majesty, you need not eliminate so many," one councilor spoke up.

"Sorry, councilor, but I'm afraid I will have to," Celice replied, a hint of defiance showing in his voice. "And I'm within my rights to do so, under the rules you spelled out." He then turned to the girls. "The following girls will be able to dance with me . . ." He then recited a list of names. He watched as the girls failed to conceal their emotions; half of the girls practically jumped for joy, and the other half almost burst into tears. Inwardly, Celice sighed. He hoped that these girls were not as bad dancers as the first group had been.

-7-

Unfortunately for Celice, those hopes turned out to be in vain. By the time he finished dancing with the sixth girl, his feet were sore, as were other parts of his body from where girls grabbed him to maintain balance. He ambled over to his seat. He had ten minutes before he had to decide on a girl, but Celice began to despair. He disliked all six of the potential girls. A feeling of hopelessness welled up in him, and he had to fight back tears.

On the floor, other people were dancing. Celice noticed Johan dancing with Tinny, and saw one of the girls that Celice had eliminated in the first round dancing with another young man. He turned away; he could no longer bear to watch any dancing. Suddenly, someone grabbed Celice's hand and hauled him to his feet.

"Would you please dance with me, Celice?" Nanna asked as the king turned toward her.

"Why?" Celice asked, and noticed that Nanna had a determined look about her.

"Watching those other girls dance was as painful to watch as it was to actually dance," Nanna replied. "Someone needs to show them how it's done."

Celice looked down. "Sorry, but I'm really not in the mood."

"I seem to recall you saying you owed me a favor," Nanna replied. "Well, I'm cashing it in right now." Reluctantly, Celice let her lead him onto the dance floor. She then wrapped his left hand around her waist, wrapped her right arm around his shoulder, and took his right hand in her left. The band began to play a slow, romantic song, and the two danced in a slow circle.

As they danced, Celice let the worries of the decision the council had placed on him go and instead focused on his dancing with Nanna. He could feel her chest pressed up against him, and felt the smooth silkiness of her dress beneath his left hand. "I like your dress," he said softly. "The color goes well with your eyes."

"Thank you," Nanna replied softly. "You also look good tonight."

Celice blushed. "You think so?"

"Yes," Nanna responded. "Your uniform makes you look very dashing. Like the prince in those fairy tales we all hear as children."

Celice's cheeks turned a deeper shade of red at the compliment. He looked across the floor and to the table where the dukes had been seated. He saw Corple fidgeting with the hem on his robes, Lester and Arthur engaged in conversation, and Oifaye watching Celice dance. When he caught Oifaye's eye, the older man nodded at him. On the dance floor, Johan and Julia were dancing. Upon seeing him, Julia burst into giggles and Johan gave Celice a thumbs-up. Celice gave them a sheepish grin in response. He then turned his head to the side and found his face semi-buried in Nanna's hair. It felt remarkably soft to the touch.

In what seemed like less than a minute, the song ended, and Celice and Nanna broke apart. "It's just as I thought," she said, smiling. "Those other girls were pulling you down. You're a wonderful dancer."

Celice, his cheeks still tinged with red, smiled back. "Thank you. I enjoyed that."

-7-

"Now, His Majesty the king will decide on which girl will be staying with him in the castle," the chief councilor announced. "Your Majesty, if you please."

Celice took a deep breath and stood up. He looked around at the other people at his table, wondering what he could do to get out of this situation. His eyes then rested on Nanna. _Sorry, Nanna. And thank you for that last dance._ Then, an idea hit Celice. _Of course! Why didn't I think of it before?_ A smile formed on his face as he looked out at the crowd.

"Thank you, Chief Councilor. As you all know, I had to choose one of the girls with whom I danced to stay here, in the royal palace, and I am pleased to inform you that I have come to a decision." He took a deep breath, then spoke. "The girl who will be staying with myself and Princess Julia in the royal palace is, in truth, already my guest in the royal palace. Princess Nanna of Nodion, I ask you to stand before me."

A cold silence gripped the room as Nanna rose from her seat and stood before Celice. "Princess Nanna, would you be my guest in the Royal Palace of Barhara?"

"Yes, Your Majesty," Nanna answered.

"Just one moment, Your Majesty!" the chief councilor exclaimed.

"There's nothing wrong, Chief Councilor," Celice replied. "The rules stated that I had to pick one girl from among the girls with whom I danced. I danced with Nanna, so I have the right to choose her. Just because it's not the result you want doesn't make it any less valid." The chief councilor's face flushed, presumably with anger, but he took his seat.

-7-

A few hours later, Celice took a seat on his bed and let his eyes fall on his wardrobe closet. A uniform similar to the one he wore at the ball caught his eye. _Nanna told me I looked like a prince out of a fairy tale in that uniform,_ he thought. _The type of prince every girl hopes to have come into her life and whisk her away to live happily ever after_. He then shook his head, wondering why his train of thought was going down that path. He then focused on the gold cape that hung from the jacket's right shoulder. _Gold. It looks just like Nanna's hair. Such soft hair . . . _He shook his head again. _What is wrong with me?_ He looked in the mirror and studied his features–primarily his blue hair. _Hmm, yes, Nanna wore a blue dress tonight. It complemented her eyes, I told her . . . What in the name of Saint Heim is going on with me? I can't seem to get Nanna out of my head!_ He then thought of how Nanna dressed that night and how it looked on her. His initial reaction had been to wonder how any human could possibly look so stunning. Her dress had fit her form perfectly, and she just seemed to glow with radiance. She even smelled wonderful, thanks to whatever perfume it was that she had been wearing. His thoughts then focused on her personality. She was kind, thoughtful, supportive, and assertive. She made Celice feel comfortable and at ease whenever she was around.

Finally, he came to the inevitable conclusion. He, Celice Baldos Chalphy, was in love.


	8. Chapter 8

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Fire Emblem, nor do I own the characters in Fire Emblem. I do, however, own any characters I create for the purpose of this story.

When Swords Cross

CHAPTER EIGHT

Light filtered in through the curtains that covered the window into the king's bedroom and Celice stirred in his bed. He sat up, yawned, and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. Glancing up at the clock on his wall, he saw that it was midmorning and slid out of bed. He walked past his dresser, and stopped to look at his calendar. When he saw what day it was, though, he did a double-take.

_How could I have lost track of time so easily? Today is my birthday!_ Celice dashed to his wardrobe, flung open the doors, grabbed an outfit, and got dressed as quickly as he could. As soon as he got dressed and opened the door, he felt something charge into him and grab him.

"Happy birthday, Celice!" Julia exclaimed.

Celice smiled. He could always count on his sister to make him smile. "Thank you, Julia. At least one of us has been able to keep track of the days."

Julia then pulled away, but grabbed Celice's arm in her own. "Come on! Everyone's waiting!"

This remark puzzled Celice. "What exactly do you mean?"

"You'll see!" Julia replied.

-8-

Julia led her brother out the castle gate. As soon as he set foot outside, he heard many voices shout in unison, "HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KING CELICE!"

Celice reflexively jumped back in surprise. Gathered before him stood a gathering made up of, at the very least, the entire city of Barhara. "Wha, what is this?"

"What does it look like, Your Majesty?" said a voice from behind him. Celice spun around to find Johan standing behind him. "The people wish to celebrate your birthday!"

"But this is unheard of!" Celice replied. "To the best of my knowledge, they never did this for Emperor Alvis, or for my great-grandfather, King Azmur."

"The people are far more pleased with the job you have done than with how either Emperor Alvis or King Azmur has done," Oifaye said as he walked from the gate. "They wish to show their gratitude by celebrating your birthday."

"They're that pleased?" Celice could not believe what he had just heard. "But I've only been king for a little over a year now."

"It doesn't take a year to judge character or potential, Your Majesty," Johan replied. "The people have done so, and found you to be what we lords always knew–you are a bright, kindhearted, and courageous person, and a natural-born leader. In other words, in the opinion of everyone present, the quintessential king."

Celice's face turned red. "I . . . I don't know what to say. I'm flattered. But can I really afford to attend a celebration? The life of a king is a busy one."

"You have the day off," Oifaye answered.

"Consider it a gift from the lords of Chalphy, Dozel, Edda, Freege, Jungby, and Velthomer," Johan added.

"There's nothing that needs urgent attention, anyway," Julia said. "The Weissen Ritter and the Roten Ritter have the bandit attacks under control, reparations are going smoothly, and foreign relations have never been better."

"Well, I guess you're right," Celice said. "So, what now?"

"Now, it's time for breakfast," Julia said. "They've set up tables and such in the center square." She then pulled out a bandanna. "But before we go, put this over your eyes."

-8-

"Are we there yet?" Celice asked when Julia brought him to a stop.

"Yes, and you can remove the bandanna," Julia replied. Celice complied, and let his jaw drop when he removed it. There sitting at the tables were the rest of the people who served under him in the war. Aless, Altenna, Arthur, Corple, Delmud, Faval, Fee, Fin, Hannibal, Lakche, Lana, Leaf, Leen, Lester, Nanna, Patty, Sety, Shanan, Skasaha, and Tinny were all present, and Johan, Julia, and Oifaye stood behind him.

"I . . . I don't believe this!" Celice exclaimed. "This is incredible!" Celice seated himself at one of the chairs at the nearest table, where the rest of the kings sat. He then noticed that there was an empty seat next to him. "Uh, who sits here?"

"Anyone you want," Julia replied.

Celice scanned the area. "Nanna, would you join me?"

"It would be my pleasure, Your Majesty," Nanna replied.

"No need for formalities, Nanna," Celice said as Nanna took her seat. He then looked around at his fellow kings. "I don't believe this! This . . . this is great! It's great to see all of you again!"

"We're happy to see you, too, Celice," Sety replied. "Maybe we should make this a regular occasion."

"Not necessarily on my birthday," Celice replied, "but I agree."

"So how have things been going?" Faval asked.

"Not as well as I'd like," Celice replied.

"The Grandbell council is composed of heartless old men," Nanna cut in. "The dukes are great, but everyone else is awful. To them, nothing is more important than pawning Celice off on one of their daughters so they get personal glory and an heir to the throne."

"Really?" Leaf turned his gaze to Celice. "Is what Nanna says true, Celice?"

"Pretty much," Celice said. "And they like to organize balls and whatnot without my consent to arrange something."

"He pulled a fast one on them at the most recent ball, though," Nanna added.

Aless's eyebrows rose. "Oh, I have to hear this. How did you pull that off, Celice?"

Celice turned red. "Well, you see, I had to dance with the girls at the ball and pick from one of the girls I danced with one to take Nanna's place in the Royal Palace. Well, I danced with Nanna at one point, so I picked her, and there was nothing the council could do about it."

"Remarkably clever, Celice," Shanan said. "Sounds like something Levin would have pulled."

"Do I want to know what that means, Shanan?" Sety asked.

"Probably not," Shanan answered.

"Speaking of which, has anybody seen Levin as of late?" Celice asked. All of the other kings at the table gave him negative responses.

Celice frowned. _I wonder if that means that Holsety has left this world? When a dragon leaves our world, what happens to the person whose body he uses?_ At that point, breakfast was served, and Celice focused his attention on his food.

-8-

After breakfast was finished, Celice found Aless approaching him. "Celice, would you mind if I talked to you alone for a minute?"

Celice was puzzled as to why Aless would make such a request, but he decided to go along with it. "Not at all. What do you want to talk about?"

"Nanna."

Celice's heart skipped a beat. "Uh, what about her?"

"Well, I found that story about the ball rather interesting," Aless said.

"Am I that good a storyteller?" Celice replied.

Aless frowned. "Celice, don't joke, please. You know what I meant."

Celice nodded. "She asked me to dance, not the other way around."

Celice's response seemed to catch Aless off-guard. "Oh."

Celice took a deep breath. "Actually, at first, I was too depressed to dance with anyone. I didn't like any of the girls that I had had to dance with. I danced with Nanna because she insisted."

"I see," Aless said, the edge of his hand on his chin. "Does this mean there's nothing going on between you two? You don't have feelings for each other?"

Celice paused, weighing his options. On one hand, he had no idea how Aless would react if he told the truth. He had no idea just how protective he might be of his younger cousin. On the other hand, if he lied and the truth got out, it could damage their relationship, both diplomatically and personally. Finally, he decided he would be better off taking his chances with Aless's reaction to the truth and sighed. "Well, I don't know how she feels about me, but I . . . I think I love her."

Aless closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "I can't say I'm surprised." He then paused.

Celice waited for some kind of rebuke. "And?"

Aless looked at Celice, puzzled. "And what?"

"It doesn't bother you?" Celice asked.

"Not really," Aless said. "She's a grown woman, just as you're a grown man. I can't press her to do anything just because I'm her older cousin, or just because I'm the king of Agustria, just like I can't press you to do anything just because I'm your friend. Also, while I do care about her, I try not to be overprotective. Besides, I know you well enough to know that she'd be in good hands if she were to fall for you. So no, I don't mind." He then thought for a moment. "I'm guessing you want to know whether or not she has feelings about you, then?"

Celice's eyes widened. "Are you saying she's told you one way or the other?"

"No," Aless responded. "However, I do pick things up."

"Such as?" Celice prompted.

"Such as the fact that she couldn't go half a day without mentioning your name in one manner or another," Aless replied. "And I seem to recall her giving you a kiss on the cheek when we left for Agustria shortly after you seized Barhara. Then there's also the fact that she asked you to dance with her. Now, I admit that I may be misreading her actions–for all I know, she could just consider you a friend, like she did during the war–but I think there's something more, personally. Still, don't jump to conclusions."

Celice nodded. He then noticed a grin creeping across his friend's face. "What?"

"You know, this birthday celebration is the perfect opportunity for a date," Aless said. "There's going to be all sorts of things going on in town. Ask Nanna to spend the day with you."

-8-

Nanna sat at a table with Altenna, Fee, Julia, Lakche, Lana, Leen, Patty, and Tinny, engaged in conversation. "So, how has Leaf been?" Nanna asked Altenna. "I hope he's been behaving for you."

Altenna laughed at the remark. "Honestly, I don't see Leaf that much. He has me in charge of the southern half of the peninsula, since I know it far better than he does. I still report to him, though he pretty much gives me free reign."

"Any sign of Arion?" Nanna asked.

Altenna frowned. "I'm afraid not. I was hoping he'd stay and help us rebuild, but he disappeared right after the battle here, and I haven't seen him since."

"Nanna, you have someone standing behind you, you know," Fee commented. Nanna turned around and saw Celice standing behind her.

"Nanna, is it all right if I talk to you for a minute?" Celice asked.

"Sure, what is it?" Nanna asked.

Celice glanced at the other girls at the table. "Alone, please?"

"Oh, all right," Nanna replied as she got up. She heard one of the girls–Julia, from the sound of it–giggle as she followed Celice around a corner.

Celice stopped and turned to Nanna. _He's fidgeting with his hands. That means he's nervous about something._ "So, what did you want to talk to me about?"

"Well, I hear from Aless that there will be all sorts of things–events, activities, and the like–going on around town," Celice said. Then, he blushed. Nanna fought back the urge to smile, since she found Celice's blushing to be endearing. She also had a feeling she knew what he would ask her, and could feel blush creeping into her cheeks, as well.

"I was wondering if . . . if you'd like to join me for the day as I check the town out."

Nanna smiled, still blushing. "Sure, I'd love to. This is the sort of thing that's better when you have someone to share it with."

Celice smiled himself, still blushing. "Thanks."

-8-

"You know, there are some times where I would prefer to travel about in anonymity," Celice said as he and Nanna walked through a bazaar.

"Such as now?" Nanna asked.

Celice nodded. "Exactly. Though I have to admit that I'm glad for not being bounced around and getting stuck in between other shoppers."

"What do you mean by 'other?'" Nanna asked.

"Well, I figured I could buy something here," Celice replied.

"Why would you buy? It's _your_ birthday," Nanna responded.

"Doesn't mean I can take something from a vendor for free," Celice said. "They have to make a living somehow too, after all."

"That's not what I meant," Nanna replied. "I meant that I'd buy something for you."

"Are you sure?" Celice asked.

"I may not be the ruler of a kingdom like you or my cousin, but I am by no means poor, Celice," Nanna responded.

"Fair enough," Celice commented. "Okay, let's see just what these vendors have for sale."

-8-

Celice ended up deciding on a pair of silver-plated gauntlets that cost Nanna no small amount of money. He initially did not want Nanna to pay, but relented after she assured him that money was no object. As Nanna was paying, however, Celice looked over at the next stand. It appeared to be a jewelry stand. Sitting on the shelf, behind the vendor's head, sat a beautiful platinum tiara with gold trim and a large aquamarine embedded in it. He made a mental note of the location of the stand, and left with Nanna after she received the gauntlets from the vendor.

"Say, why don't I get Tyrfing fixed?" Nanna said.

"You don't have to," Celice replied. "You've done enough already."

"No, I haven't." Nanna stopped and looked Celice directly in the eyes, just barely two feet away. Celice felt himself start to sweat as he stared into her sapphire eyes. How easy it would be to just reach out, pull her to him, and press his lips to hers . . .

"This is your birthday, Celice," Nanna said in a soft voice. "I want to make sure that your birthday is perfect."

_You already have,_ Celice thought. _But you insist that you haven't done enough yet, and I know how stubborn you can be. So I won't try to convince you otherwise._ "If you insist."

"Good." Nanna then grabbed Celice's hand. "Now, let's head over to the smithy."

-8-

"The blacksmith says that the repairs should take about ten minutes," Nanna said to Celice.

"Okay." Celice sat for a moment. "Uh, Nanna, I'll be right back. I need to, er, relieve myself."

"Huh?" Nanna looked at Celice with a puzzled expression on her face. Then, it dawned on her. "Oh. Well, be quick, all right?"

"Sure thing." Celice rounded the corner. However, instead of doing what he told Nanna he would do, he headed back to the main street. He made a beeline for the jewelry vendor.

The vendor turned pale when he saw Celice approach. "What can I do for you, Your Majesty?"

"How much is that tiara behind your head?" Celice asked.

The vendor turned around. "This? It's 50,000 gold."

Celice winced. _Geez, that's pricey! That's as much as my money sack can carry when full!_ "I'll buy it, but I'd like you to hold it for me. Is that possible?"

"Anything for Your Majesty," the vendor replied. "But I do wonder what this is for . . . oh, wait! This wouldn't be for that vision of loveliness you were with earlier, would it?"

Celice looked around, and discreetly nodded. "But keep that a secret, all right?"

"Anything for Your Majesty," the vendor repeated. Celice pulled out his money bag, handed the vendor the fifty thousand gold, and the vendor took the tiara off the shelf and placed it below the counter. "You can pick it up at any time, Your Majesty."

"Thank you very much," Celice replied, and walked off.

-8-

As planned, Celice and Nanna spent the remainder of the day together. They explored the town, played games, ate meals, and at twilight, danced with the other nobles in the town square. Finally, it was time for the final event of the day. Celice was excited when he heard what it was, though Nanna had no idea what was going on.

"What exactly are fireworks?" Nanna asked.

"Fireworks were invented by the fire mages of Velthomer," Celice explained. "They're essentially projectiles that are shot straight up into the sky, where they explode in various colors and patterns." Seeing the worried look on Nanna's face, he quickly added, "Don't worry, they're completely harmless. Just loud." A few minutes later, the first firework was shot into the sky. It exploded into a sphere of streams of white light. Celice could hear Nanna gasp in the seat next to him. A few more fireworks were then shot off, similar to the first, though one was gold and one was blue. The display continued for a few minutes before Celice felt a cool breeze. Beside him, Nanna shivered.

"You're cold?" Celice asked.

Nanna nodded. "I hate to ask, but could you lend me your cape?"

Celice, however, had something else in mind, and he was feeling quite bold at the moment. "I have a better idea," he said. He then reached out with his arm, wrapped it around Nanna's shoulder, and pulled her up against his body.

This action caught Nanna off-guard, and she tensed, blushing furiously. However, she quickly relaxed into it.

"Better?" Celice asked.

"Yes," Nanna replied, and she rested her head against the king's shoulder. They remained in that position for the remainder of the fireworks display.

-8-

Nanna and Celice, with torch in hand, made their way back to the Royal Palace. Celice took it upon himself to escort Nanna to her bedroom. The two stopped outside the door, and looked at each other.

Celice smiled. "That was the best birthday I have ever had. Thank you so much."

"I should thank you," Nanna responded. "I had a wonderful time." She planted a kiss on Celice's cheek, and walked into her bedroom, closing the door behind her.

Inside her bedroom, Nanna lied down on her bed, smiling. _I loved every minute of today,_ she thought. _I can never spend enough time with Celice, it seems. I am so glad that I brought my idea of coming here to represent Agustria to Aless._


	9. Chapter 9

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Fire Emblem, nor do I own the characters in Fire Emblem. I do, however, own any characters I create for the purpose of this story.

When Swords Cross

CHAPTER NINE

Celice was in a meeting with the council when a guard entered. "Your Majesty, a messenger from the Kingdom of Agustria is at the front gate to the palace. He claims he has an urgent request."

Celice suppressed a smile. He was glad for the break. "Very well. I will meet him in the throne room."

-9-

The messenger walked in and kneeled. "Rise," Celice said. "What is it you wish to tell me?"

"Your Majesty, I bring a request from King Aless of Agustria himself," the messenger stated. "His Majesty is having trouble with bandit attacks, and due to Agustria's size, the Cross Knights cannot handle them all. Your Majesty is humbly requested to bring reinforcements to back up the Cross Knights."

"I see," Celice said. "Return to Agusty, and let King Aless know that I will assemble the Weissen Ritter and depart as soon as I can."

The messenger bowed and turned to leave. However, he came to a stop when someone said, "Just a moment, sir."

The messenger turned around. "What is it, milady?"

Nanna turned to Celice. "Your Majesty, I request that I accompany you on this trip. Agustria is my homeland, and King Aless is my cousin."

Celice thought for a moment. _She makes a good point. I guess I can let her come along._ "Very well," he said. "Let King Aless know that Nanna and myself will be leading the Weissen Ritter." The messenger bowed and left.

Celice then turned to the rest of the council. "I hope you don't mind my ending the council right now. After all, I need to prepare for this." He then let his gaze sweep slowly across the room. "I trust that no one objects to my actions?" He paused, but no one said a word. "Very well. I will see you all when I return from Agustria."

-9-

Celice rapped gently on Nanna's door. "Nanna? It's me," he said through the door.

"Come in," came Nanna's reply. Celice opened the door and walked into Nanna's room. "What is it?" Nanna asked.

Celice looked around, and saw that Nanna had been busy packing for the trip. He himself had just finished packing. "Before we go, I wanted to give you something."

"What is it that you want me to have?" Nanna asked.

Celice unhooked the scabbard from his belt and presented it and the sword it contained to Nanna. "I want you to have this."

Nanna appeared puzzled. "A sword? Celice, I have two swords already–a Prayer Sword and an Earth Sword."

"Yes, but this sword is just as special," Celice said. "As you already know, in the year Gran 757, the Verdane Army, led by Prince Gandolf, invaded southern Grandbell, took control of the Duchy of Jungby, and kidnaped Lady Aideen. My father led a successful counteroffensive to take Jungby back and rescue Aideen. When word of this reached the capital, my great-grandfather, King Azmur, sent Lord Alvis to deliver a silver sword to my father. This is that sword. It served him well, it served me well, and now it should serve you well."

Nanna's eyes widened at this. "Celice, I can't. This is the only thing you have to remember your father by. Besides, as you said, that was a gift from the king of Grandbell at that time. I can't accept this."

"This sword is not the only keepsake I have of my father," Celice replied. "Remember, my father used Tyrfing in his charge into Grandbell, and Tyrfing is in my possession now. At any rate, I no longer need this sword because of Tyrfing. However, to not use it would be a terrible waste of craftsmanship and a shame on my father's memory. That's why I want you to have it. You can put it to far better use than I can now."

Nanna looked at the sword, in thought. _Now that I think about it, this sword does seem to be Celice's prized possession. He used it exclusively until he received Tyrfing, and he always took an extraordinary amount of care of it. For all that time, it was the sole memento he had of his father. To entrust it to me means that either he cares very greatly about me, or that he places an immense amount of trust in me. Maybe both. If that's the case, then I have no business refusing it._ "Very well," she said. "Thank you, Celice. I promise I will take as good care of this sword as you have done."

-9-

Approximately a week later, Grandbell's forces arrived at the Agustrian capital of Agusty. Led by Celice and Nanna, they arrived at the front gate of the royal palace, where they were greeted by Aless. "Welcome, warriors of Grandbell," Aless said to them. "We thank you for your aid. The pioneer towns in the center of the kingdom have been suffering from bandit attacks, and my Cross Knights and I are outnumbered. With you, the Weissen Ritter, providing us support, we will be able to end this problem much more quickly than I had anticipated. We leave tomorrow morning, and I expect everyone here fully rested when we leave. I have made arrangements for all of you to stay in the town. See you all tomorrow." With that, the knights dispersed. Celice and Nanna turned to leave, but before they got too far, Aless said, "King Celice, Nanna, wait a moment. You two are to be my guests in the royal palace."

Celice smiled. "Ah, thank you! This should be nice." He and Nanna then followed Aless into the castle.

-9-

Celice, Nanna, and Aless sat down at a table, waiting for dinner to be served. As they waited, Nanna had noticed that Celice's head had not stopped moving for a second since they entered the palace. To her, it appeared that Celice was trying to take in everything around him. Suppressing a giggle, she asked, "Leaving no stone unturned in this castle, huh, Celice?"

Celice stopped looking around and turned to Nanna. "Huh? Oh, right. Well, keep in mind that I was born in this very castle."

This caught Nanna by surprise. "You were?"

"Yes," Celice replied. "I was born during Grandbell's occupation of southern Agustria, before Manfloy abducted my mother and my father was declared a traitor. The first three or so months of my life were spent in this building."

"I see," was all Nanna could say. She then turned to her cousin. "Did you know this?"

Aless nodded. "My father saw Celice with his own two eyes. In fact, that's part of the reason why I invited Celice to stay in the palace with me."

"Only part?" Nanna asked. "What else factored into your decision?"

"Two other things," Aless replied. "First of all, Celice is my friend, and secondly, it wouldn't exactly be good for diplomacy if I made the king of the nation I asked to aid me quarter in town.

"Anyway, how have you been? Has the council been the same as always?"

"Unfortunately, yes," Celice replied. "Well, there has been one change. They're being more secretive than they used to be. I don't like it. I have Julia in charge of the palace guard, and have asked for some backup from the various dukes. Each has supplied one squad from their armies. I've also given the council members strict orders to not enter the palace until my return."

"All the more reason to get this over with quickly," Aless said. "Celice, if something happens in Grandbell, just let me know and I'll ride out immediately."

"Thank you, Aless," Celice said. "That means a lot to me."

-9-

After dinner, Aless pulled Celice aside under the pretense of discussing strategy. When he opened his mouth, however, he said, "So, how have you and Nanna been getting along?"

"Uh, fine," Celice said.

"Anything else happen between the two of you since your birthday celebration?" Aless asked.

"I gave her my father's old sword," Celice replied.

"The silver sword your father got from your great-grandfather via Lord Alvis? I remember that sword," Aless commented. "Did anything result from that?"

"Not really," Celice said.

Aless sighed and shook his head. "Celice, Celice, Celice. Sometimes you really worry me. You need to make a move, or you're never going to get anywhere. Look, promise me this. By the time you leave Agustria, you will tell Nanna how you feel."

"Why?" Celice asked.

"Because, Celice, you need to take action if you want this to go anywhere," Aless said. "Just promise me."

Celice sighed. "Okay, okay, fine. I promise."

-9-

Two days later, and the Cross Knights and the Weissen Ritter were in the field, fighting bandits. The two forces had split up to handle the bandits more quickly. The Cross Knights were fighting the bandits to the south, while the Weissen Ritter were battling the bandits in the north. They had then planned to rendezvous after they reduced the bandits' numbers, and the Weissen Ritter were on their way to the rendezvous point.

"Hey, wait a second," Nanna said. "I thought I saw someone in those woods over there."

"Huh?" Celice followed her gaze. "All right, I'll go check it out. Everyone else, stay here."

"Celice, you didn't see anything," Nanna said. "I did. I'm going with you."

Celice sighed. "All right, let's go." The two dismounted from their horses and walked into the woods. However, the next thing they knew, they had both been grabbed from behind. Celice spun his head around and caught sight of a large, muscular man in tan garments before he took a blow to the head. A similar blow to Nanna knocked her out. Celice found himself reeling, but still conscious. He feigned unconsciousness for the moment and marked the path on which they were being taken. Several minutes later, he and Nanna were unceremoniously dumped on the ground.

"Boss, take a look at what we caught!" said the bandit that had carried Celice.

"Are these the leaders of the knights that've been killin' our men?" another bandit, likely the leader, asked.

"That they are," the first bandit said.

"Hm, we've got a rare catch, here," the leader commented. "I think I'll keep her for myself!"

Celice felt his anger build, but he quickly got it under control. He could not afford to abandon his act just yet. "And what do we do with the other one?"

"Kill him," the leader said. "We've got no use for him. Actually, I think I'll do it myself–with his own sword. Grab it off him!"

Celice felt himself rolled onto his side. He could feel a tug, but nothing happened. "Boss, the sword ain't comin' out of its scabbard!"

"Eh? Why would that be?" the boss wondered.

Celice decided that this was his time to act. He suddenly shot his right arm into the air and grabbed the bandit by the arm. With one swift move, he pulled the bandit to the ground and drove his left elbow into the center of his forearm, breaking it. He then leaped up and drew Tyrfing from its scabbard. "You want to know why? This is a holy weapon. Tyrfing, to be specific."

"Wha–? Tyrfing?" The boss, to Celice's surprise, grinned. "Yer King Celice, then! You'll demand a hefty ransom from Grandbell!"

"That's not going to happen," Celice replied. "At least one person here is going to die–even if it's me."

The boss broke out in laughter. "You think you can handle twenty of us on yer own? You must be nuts!"

"I take it you're not familiar with the properties of holy weapons," Celice replied. "I've faced even greater odds before and walked out alive and in good shape."

"And he's not alone, either." Nanna climbed to her feet and drew her own sword.

"Fine!" the boss shouted. "Everyone, attack!"

Three bandits leaped at Celice. However, Celice leaped backwards and avoided their axes. One bandit threw his axe, but Celice ducked, ran forward, and dodged to the side at the last moment. Celice sliced through one bandit's arm, forcing him to scream out in pain and drop his axe. A second bandit leaped over his fallen comrade but stopped short when Celice impaled him through the stomach with his blade. He then leaped over the fallen bandit and caught the third bandit in the chest with his sword. As he pulled his sword from the bandit's corpse, he heard a piercing cry: "CELICE!!"

Celice spun around and saw the bandit he had previously wounded, his axe in his intact arm, swing at Celice. However, before he could react, he found himself knocked sideways. He could do nothing but look on in horror and feel the color drain from his face as the bandit's swing sliced a gaping wound across Nanna's midsection. Nanna hit the ground with a sickening thud, and blood began to flow from the wound.

Celice climbed to his feet and saw his vision turn red. The sword in his right hand seemed to tingle with energy as he charged at the bandit that had wounded Nanna and drove Tyrfing into his neck. Two more bandits appeared to the sides of the bandit Celice had just killed, but Celice cut them down almost instantly. The other bandits swarmed him en masse, but Celice showed no fatigue or hesitation as he effortlessly slaughtered each individual. In less than a minute, all of the bandits were dead. His eyes then came to rest on Nanna, who was still lying on the ground.

Celice's vision cleared in an instant, and the severity of the situation hit him. Nanna lay dying, and he was the only one who could save her. He dashed over and gingerly scooped her into his arms. He then glanced around, to get his bearings, and the severity of what he had just done hit him hard. All around him were the bodies of bandits, several of which were in more than one piece. Normally, this would not have upset him, because he could justify it by the fact that he was acting in self-defense, but this time, he knew that it was a result of rage. Horror and shame flooded his mind, as he realized that he had betrayed one of Shanan's fundamental teachings when wielding a sword. His eyes then shifted to Nanna, and he reminded himself of what he needed to do. There was going to be plenty of time to reflect on what he had done after Nanna was safe. He got his bearings and ran at top speed.

"Celice . . ." came a voice from near his left shoulder.

"Nanna, it's all right," Celice said, his voice shaky. "Everything will be all right."

"Celice . . ." Nanna said softly. "Don't bother . . . Leave me . . ."

"No, Nanna," Celice replied. "Nanna, I'm going to save you."

"It's too late for that . . ." Nanna responded. "Just leave me . . ."

"No!" Celice responded, growing ever more panicked. "I'm not going to abandon you!"

"Celice, I'm not going to live . . ." Nanna said. "Just save yourself the trouble and leave me . . ."

Around that point in time, Celice emerged from the forest, Nanna in his arms. "Look, Nanna, there's a town! Where there's a town, there are priests! You're going to be all right!"

"I'm not going to make it . . ." Nanna replied.

Celice continued to run, but he was growing more and more fatigued. His legs began to tire out, his arms grew sore, and his vision began to swim. "No . . . no, Nanna! I will get you there in time to save you!"

"Celice, you're tired . . ." Nanna said.

"So? You passed out when you saved my life back in Velthomer!" Celice shot back. "I can take a little . . . fatigue . . ."

"Why . . . ?"

"Why . . . why what?" Celice asked, puzzled.

"Why are you doing this . . . ? Why do you refuse . . . ?"

Tears began to well in Celice's face. "Nanna, I . . ." Suddenly, something snapped in his mind. He could take it no longer. He squeezed his eyes shut and practically shouted, "Nanna, I love you! I am absolutely crazy for you! You want to know why I'm not listening to your protests? Because I don't want to live a life without you in it! I want you with me, at my side, forever!" Unfortunately, at this point, Celice was exhausted physically, mentally, and emotionally, and he could continue no longer. His knees buckled, his arms gave out, dumping Nanna unceremoniously on the ground, and he hit the ground himself a second later. His vision faded to black, and the sounds around him faded into nothingness.

-9-

Nanna looked on at Celice. Her eyes, which were half-closed for most of the past several minutes, were wide open now. She then looked to the town. They were roughly a hundred steps from the town's entrance. She then looked back at Celice. _Celice . . . I was such a fool. I thought I was thinking of you, but I was wrong. And now I know why . . . you love me. You gave everything you had for my sake, and all I did to repay you was tell you to leave me behind. Thank you for showing me I was wrong._ She then made her way over to the unconscious king and draped his arm around her shoulders. _Consider this my way of returning your feelings._ Running on sheer willpower and adrenaline, Nanna climbed to her feet and began to walk toward the town, with Celice on her back. However, she was simultaneously losing blood, and losing strength with it. Nanna fell to her knees, but she refused to stop. She fell to her hands, Celice still on her back, and crawled. She crawled until she reached the town and fell flat on her chest. "Help . . . Help!" she shouted. "Help! Help us!"

A villager walked out of his house and saw the scene. "Oh my God!" he shouted. "Are you all right?"

"I . . . we need help!" Nanna shouted in response.

"I-I'll go get the priest!" the villager shouted. With that he ran off, and he appeared a minute later with a priest.

The priest kneeled on the ground next to Nanna. "All right, I'll get right to work." However, Nanna had used the last of her strength, and she lost consciousness as the healing magic began to enter her body.


	10. Chapter 10

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Fire Emblem, nor do I own the characters in Fire Emblem. I do, however, own any characters I create for the purpose of this story.

When Swords Cross

CHAPTER 10

Celice's eyes opened and he shot straight up, looking around frantically. He found himself in a bed.

"Oh, good, you're awake."

"Huh?" Celice's head swung to the left. He saw a bald, old man with a gray beard dressed in holy robes. "Who . . . who are you?"

"I'm Bishop Mulligan, the pastor of this church," the old man replied.

"And where is 'this church?'" Celice asked.

"You're in the town of Obmil," Bishop Mulligan replied.

"How long have I been unconscious for?" Celice asked.

"I'm not exactly certain, but I'd say it's been roughly 18 hours," Bishop Mulligan answered. "I don't know exactly when you passed out, so it's impossible for me to tell you for certain. You were already unconscious when your lady friend brought you into town."

This surprised Celice. _Nanna got me into town herself? How? She was too badly injured, wasn't she?_ Then it hit him. "Nanna! What about Nanna? Is she all right?"

"Her wound was very severe," Bishop Mulligan said. "However, we were able to fully heal it."

Relief flooded through Celice's body. "So she's all right?"

"That remains to be seen, I'm afraid," Bishop Mulligan responded. "She lost a lot of blood. She's still unconscious."

Celice threw back the covers and slid off his bed. "Take me to her. I want to see her."

"Careful, now. You mustn't overexert yourself," Bishop Mulligan cautioned. "If you want to see her that badly, I suppose I can take you to her room."

-10-

Bishop Mulligan opened the door to Nanna's room, and Celice walked in. He felt a chill run down his spine as he looked at the bed.

Nanna was lying in bed, the covers pulled up to her hips. Her hands were folded across her stomach, and her face was pale. It looked as if she were dead.

Tears began to spill from Celice's eyes. "No, it can't be. She can't be . . ."

"She's still alive, for the time being," Bishop Mulligan said, resting his hand on Celice's shoulder. "She only looks pale because of all the blood she lost."

Celice, however, needed to be convinced for himself. He removed his gloves and put his right hand on Nanna's forehead and his left hand on his own.

"She's colder than I am," he said. "But she's still warmer than our surroundings. So that means . . ."

"As I said, she's still alive," Bishop Mulligan said. "At this point, though, there's nothing more we can do for her. Whether or not she survives depends on the resilience of her own body.

"Forgive me for asking, but . . . your friend here looks very familiar, and her name sounds familiar, as well. Would you know why that would be?"

Celice turned to the bishop and nodded. "She's a noble of Agustria's House Nodion. She's the daughter of Lachesis. I've been told that the physical resemblance between mother and daughter is uncanny, but I've never seen Lachesis myself."

This had clearly caught the holy man off-guard. "And who, may I ask, are you?"

Celice took a deep breath. "My name is Celice Baldos Chalphy."

If the revelation of Nanna's identity had caught the bishop off-guard, the revelation of Celice's identity was akin to a knockout punch. "As in the hero of the holy war? The king of Grandbell? Son of Sigurd the Hero?"

Celice's face flushed a little at the accolades, and nodded. "The same. King Aless had requested Grandbellian support to help fight the bandits, so I came personally. Nanna is with me because she was Agustria's ambassador to Grandbell. We were en route to our rendezvous point to meet the Cross Knights when we were ambushed . . ." Then, the image of the bandits' corpses all around him appeared in his mind. His lapse in discipline came to mind, as well.

"What is it?" the bishop asked.

Celice sighed. "Nanna and I fought the bandits. In the middle of the fight, a bandit I had previously wounded got up and attacked me from behind. Nanna saw it, and . . . leaped in the way of the bandit's attack. When I saw that happen, I . . . I lost myself in my rage. I slaughtered every bandit there in less than a minute. In doing so, I betrayed one of my teacher's most important lessons–never let your anger control you. In the past, I'd been able to control my anger. I never succumbed to rage when I fought in the war. Not even when I fought Emperor Alvis, who killed my father, or Archbishop Manfloy, who, among other things, tore my mother away from my father and me when I was still an infant."

"Well, from the sound of it, what you did saved both your own and Nanna's lives," Bishop Mulligan said. "I wouldn't take it too hard if I were you. It was just one lapse. Instead, focus on the number of times that you _did_ keep your anger under control, and take steps to increase your control of your anger."

"You don't find it bad that it resulted in twenty dead men?" Celice asked, surprised.

Bishop Mulligan shook his head. "You acted in self-defense. If they hadn't ambushed you, they wouldn't be dead."

"Yeah, you have a point," Celice said. "I feel better about it now. Thanks for listening."

Bishop Mulligan smiled. "Of course. If you ever need a willing ear, I'll be here."

-10-

Over the course of the next several days, Celice stood guard outside Nanna's room, waiting for the moment that she would wake up. Fortunately, for the most part, Nanna had regained her color, and her body temperature was rising back to normal. Four days after Celice had awoken in his quarters in Obmil, an unexpected guest arrived.

"Aless!" Celice exclaimed when he saw his fellow king and friend. "How did you find us?"

"The bishop here sent word to the capital immediately after he learned your identities," Aless replied. "I rode out as soon as I could." He then narrowed his eyes as he looked Celice up and down. "Are you all right?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, at least physically," Celice replied. "There's just a lump on the back of my head where the bandit hit me in an attempt to knock me out."

"And mentally?" Aless asked.

Celice sighed. "I'm stuck in a state of limbo. I'm relieved that Nanna is alive, but also anxious for her to awaken–if she even does awaken. And even if she does, I'm worried about her response."

"Response?" Aless asked, puzzled.

"I . . . When I was trying to get Nanna to safety, I was in a state of emotional turmoil," Celice said. "I was scared for Nanna's sake, upset by her defeatist attitude–she had kept telling me to leave her behind–and upset with myself for losing control of my anger. Eventually, something snapped, and I . . . I confessed my feelings to her. So I, uh, kinda fulfilled the promise you made me make."

"Well, it wasn't the set of circumstances I'd been hoping for, but at least you did it," Aless remarked. "And now you're worried about whether or not she'll reciprocate your feelings?" Celice nodded. "I wouldn't worry about that if I were you. I heard the story about how Nanna crawled into town, with you draped across her back, with the last of her strength. If she hadn't used strength carrying you in, she might be conscious now. But she wanted to make sure that you got medical attention. I'd say that speaks for itself."

"Maybe," Celice said.

"Let's go get something to eat," Aless said.

"No, I'm staying here," Celice replied.

Aless frowned. "Celice, I know you're worried about Nanna, but she isn't going to disappear if you leave for half an hour."

Celice shook his head. "It's not that, Aless. I want to be the first person Nanna sees when she awakens. Just have a servant bring my meal here–they've been doing it all week anyway."

"All right," Aless said, sighing. "Mind if I join you?"

"Not at all," Celice said, smiling for the first time in days. "I could use the company."

-10-

A day after Aless's arrival, Celice was still sitting in the hallway, on a chair against the wall opposite the door to the room in which Nanna lie. However, as he sat, he thought he heard sounds coming from within Nanna's room. He got up and was about to walk to the door when the door was thrown open. Celice saw Nanna, wide awake, standing in the doorway.

Celice tried to speak, but no words escaped his mouth. It was just as well, for very suddenly Nanna reached out, grabbed Celice's collar in both hands, pulled him toward her, and forcefully pressed her lips to his.

Several seconds passed before Nanna pulled back. Celice, whose face was beet-red at this point, blurted out, "Uh, nice to see you, too." Saying nothing, Nanna grabbed Celice's wrists, pulled him into the room, and sat him down on the bed. She then sat next to him.

Nanna then spoke. "How long have I been out?"

"Five days," Celice replied.

"Have you been waiting out there that whole time?" Nanna asked.

"I have," Celice nodded. "I wanted to be the first person you saw when you awoke."

Nanna pressed up against Celice's side. "You're such a sweetheart, Celice. That's why I love you."

At the sound of the phrase "I love you," Celice got flustered. "You . . . you . . ."

"Did you think I'd grab you and kiss you like that if I didn't?" Nanna remarked.

"Uh . . . guess not," Celice said.

"So, how long have you had feelings for me?" Nanna asked.

Celice pondered for a moment. "Well, I first realized it after that ball. You know, the one where you made me dance with you. But I'm certain my feelings go further back than that. Since before we took Velthomer in the war, at the absolute latest. Though I think the seed was planted the first night we spent in Alster.

"What about you, Nanna?"

"Since you saved my life in northern Thracia," Nanna replied.

They sat in silence for a moment. Then, Nanna spoke. "Celice, do you remember what you said to me right before you passed out?"

"I do," Celice said. "Every word. I don't think I'll forget for as long as I live."

"Remember that last part? About how you said you wanted me in your life forever? That sounded like a proposal to me."

"Huh?" This caught Celice off-guard. "Actually, I guess you have a good point there. I'd love to have you as my wife. However, I'm not going to officially propose yet. We need to return to Grandbell first. Then, I will find your mother and ask her for your hand."

Nanna sat up straight and looked at Celice. "You think my mother is still alive?"

Celice looked off into space. "Yes. I don't know why, but I just have a feeling that she's still alive and out there somewhere."

Another moment passed before Nanna spoke again. "Hey, Celice. Remember when we first met?"

"How could I forget?" Celice remarked. "I think I still have a mark from where you slapped me."

"Yeah, that's what I was going to ask, if you remembered unintentionally seeing up a bit of my skirt," Nanna said. Then, a devious grin spread across her face and she grabbed the hem of her skirt. "Want to get a better look?"

Celice turned red. "What? I . . . I don't . . ."

Nanna burst out in laughter. "I was just kidding, Celice." She then planted a kiss on Celice's cheek. "You're so cute when you blush."

Celice felt the spot on his cheek where Nanna had kissed him. As he did, he could feel something swell within him. He felt as if he had to do something. "Oh, come now, surely you don't think that a mere peck on the cheek will satisfy me?" It was his turn to take the initiative. He stood up and pulled Nanna up to her feet before him. He then placed his hands around the sides of her face.

Nanna found herself staring into Celice's blue eyes and suddenly felt very scared. _Why am I so scared? I kissed him a few minutes ago, but now . . ._ Celice slowly moved in for the kill, and the next thing they knew, their lips met.

Celice lowered his right hand to Nanna's back. He could feel her body tense, then slowly relax. He felt her arms snake up around his neck, and he pulled her closer. He could feel the gentle swell of her breasts press against his chest, and could feel her skirt brush against his legs.

It was a need of air that broke them apart. However, they did not let go of each other. Instead, Nanna nestled her head up against Celice's clavicle. Celice moved his left hand to the middle of her back, and began to slowly stroke her hair with his right hand. He leaned in toward Nanna's left ear and muttered, "I love you, Nanna."

"And I love you, Celice," came Nanna's quiet reply.


	11. Chapter 11

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Fire Emblem, nor do I own the characters in Fire Emblem. I do, however, own any characters I create for the purpose of this story.

When Swords Cross

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Celice and Nanna led the Weissen Ritter up through the main street of the capital city of Barhara, and up to the front gate of the royal palace. Waiting for them was Julia, who ran up and gave Celice a hug after he dismounted from his horse.

"Welcome back!" Julia exclaimed when she broke apart from her half-brother. "How did it go?"

"There's not a bandit left free in Agustria," Celice replied. "All are either locked away or dead."

"So, mission accomplished?" Julia asked.

"You could say that," Nanna answered as she got off her own horse. "In more ways than one, as well."

This remark puzzled Julia. "What's that supposed to mean?"

However, at that moment, an entourage of some sort walked up to the gate. "We'll explain everything later," Celice said to Julia before turning to face the group before him.

Harman, the Chief Councilor, stepped forward. "Welcome back from Agustria, Your Majesty. I trust everything went well?"

"Very much so," Celice replied.

Harman then took a deep breath. "Your Majesty, the other councilors and I have decided that we have left you to your own devices concerning a bride long enough." He then motioned to the group of young women behind him. "We ask that you pick from among the girls here one to court and eventually marry."

"Sure, that's not a problem," Celice responded, much to Harman's surprise. He then turned to his side. "Nanna, if you will come here, please."

Nanna walked up to Celice and looked out among the group of councilors and their daughters. "Well, Your Majesty?" Harman prompted.

"Chief Councilor, I've already decided," Celice replied. "The girl I have chosen is standing next to me." He then turned to Nanna and kissed her. When they broke apart and Celice turned to the group before them, he could see shock on the faces of the councilors and death glares at Nanna from the councilors' daughters.

"Your Majesty, please be reasonable," Harman protested. "She's an Agustrian."

"So? Where do you think I just was, fighting bandits?" Celice shot back.

"And how do you know that she just doesn't want you for your wealth?" piped in another councilor.

"One, I've known Nanna since before we brought down the Empire," Celice said. "And two, if I'm concerned about anyone after my wealth, it would be your daughters, not the cousin of Agustria's king."

Harman's jaw dropped after Celice's last remark. "You . . . You . . . Your Majesty, you're making a grave mistake."

"You may think so, but do keep in mind that _I_ am king here," Celice replied. "Therefore, I have final say. If I do live to regret it–and I doubt I will–then you can say, 'We told you so.' But until that happens, you'll just have to live with my decision."

One of the councilors opened his mouth to protest, but Harman held out a hand to him. "We understand, Your Majesty. If you will excuse us." The councilors then turned and left, taking their daughters with them.

Celice and Nanna then turned back toward the palace and Julia, who, much to their surprise, had a big smile on her face. "So that was what you meant by the comment 'in more ways than one,' huh, Nanna?" Nanna blushed in response.

"Yes, though it happened in a way neither of us would have imagined," Celice commented. He then launched into the story of how his confession came out.

"Well, at any rate, it's about time," Julia remarked.

"Eh? What do you mean by that?" Celice asked.

"Let's just say I picked up on it long ago, shall we?" Julia commented, with a smile.

-11-

For the next few days, the palace was relatively quiet. The councilors had not returned since Celice and Nanna's return from Agustria. However, Celice was not about to complain, as it not only meant less time dealing with their squabbling, but it also meant he could spend more time with Nanna. The two were almost inseparable; they ate together, they trained together, and every evening, they would take a walk around the palace grounds together. In fact, the only times that they were not by each other's sides were when they bathed and when they slept. The bandit attacks to the east had finally settled down, and the nation was at peace–or so it seemed, as a sudden, urgent message made its way to the capital.

"Your Majesty!" exclaimed the messenger as he entered the throne room where Celice, Nanna, and Julia stood. "Your Majesty, Edda is under attack!"

"What?!" Celice shouted in surprise. "By whom?"

"It's the private army of Councilor Brakiss, Your Majesty!" the messenger replied.

"Is he out of his mind?!" Celice exclaimed. "That's an act of outright treason!"

"Edda's forces have met his forces, but are struggling, and support is requested!" the messenger said.

Celice nodded, but before he could speak, another messenger entered the throne room.

"Begging your pardon, Your Majesty, but I bring urgent news! Freege is under attack by the private army of Councilor Morton!"

Celice fell back into his throne, and held his left hand to his forehead. "How could I have been so foolish? The councilors haven't come because they've been preparing for this! But I never thought they would stoop this low . . . How fares the Gelben Ritter?"

"They're holding off the councilor's army for the time being," the messenger replied. "It seems to be a stalemate."

This repeated itself four more times as messengers from Chalphy, Jungby, Dozel, and Velthomer arrived, all bearing similar news. However, Edda's forces were the only ones struggling.

"All right," Celice said. "I will lead a battalion to come to Edda's aid."

"Celice, wait." It was Julia. "Celice, let me go instead."

Celice looked at Julia. "But why?"

"Please, Celice. I have a bad feeling about this. We've heard nothing about Chief Councilor Harman. Let me go instead. You and Nanna stay here at the palace with the remainder of the knights."

Celice sighed. "Very well. Julia, you will take a battalion of my knights and rush to Edda's aid. May the crusaders smile upon you."

-11-

A day after Julia's departure, Celice paced the throne room in anxiety. Then, he heard a cry of "Your Majesty!"

A guard entered the throne room. "Your Majesty, we have a major problem! The city of Barhara has been surrounded by the private army of Chief Councilor Harman!"

Celice cursed. "How many men?"

"A large number, to be blunt," the guard replied. "An exact number is indeterminable at this point."

"All right," Celice said. "Alert the knights and tell them to prepare for battle. I will meet them at the gate."

The guard bowed and left. A minute later, Nanna ran up to the king. "Celice, what's going on?"

"Chief Councilor Harman has surrounded the city with his personal army," Celice replied. "I'm riding out with the troops to meet them head-on."

"Celice, let me come too," Nanna said. "I love you too much to risk losing you."

Celice wanted to say no, but he knew that Nanna would never listen. "All right. Meet up with the knights outside the palace. I'll be there shortly." He gave Nanna a quick kiss, then ran down to the armory.

-11-

"What's going on?" the old man in the armory asked.

"The councilors have rebelled," Celice said. "The chief councilor's private army has surrounded Barhara. I'm running out to meet them."

"They WHAT?" exclaimed the old man. "Hang on, I'll get your armor right away!" He disappeared for a moment and returned with Celice's armor. Celice grabbed it and began to assemble it when he noticed something different. Where the royal crest had once been was a new crest. This crest showed the sword Tyrfing, and behind it was the book of Narga. Also, between the sword and the tome was a white dragon, its neck wrapped around the hilt of the sword once and its tail wrapped around the blade. "What's this?" he asked.

"The new royal crest," the old man said. "The order came in a few days ago. I designed it myself. Your lady said you would like it."

"My lady," Celice said to himself as he studied the crest. He then put the armor on. "My lady." It took a moment for him to grasp the significance of that phrase. He now had a woman who he loved with all his heart, and he had a woman who loved him with all her heart. He decided he liked the phrase.

Celice turned to the man and smiled. "Tell her she was right the next time you see her. Oh, and hand me my sword. If the army is as big as I've heard it is, I'll definitely need it."

The old man quickly complied and procured the holy blade for the king. "May the crusader Baldo watch over you, Your Majesty," he said.

-11-

Celice led the charge out of the city and into the field surrounding the capital. However, he froze when he saw the enemy's forces.

The guard had been right when he had said that there was a large army outside the city. However, this army was by far larger than what he had expected. A movement to the right caught Celice's attention, and toward him rode Chief Councilor Harman.

"What is the meaning of this, Harman?" Celice demanded.

"I'm merely acting on behalf of the well-being of the kingdom, Your Majesty," Harman replied. "I'm rectifying your mistake."

"What you're doing is treason!" Celice exclaimed. "Regardless of whether it's on the battlefield here, or in the dungeon, you will pay for this crime with your life!"

"I'm aware of the laws, Your Majesty," Harman responded. "After all, I wrote several of them myself. Which is why you must die on this day."

Celice's eyes narrowed. "What is it you plan to do once you off me?"

"Simple, really," Harman replied. "As I'm sure you've heard by now, the other councilors have attacked the various duchies. I have no idea who will survive, but this matters not. The survivors will be considered members of a conspiracy to take the throne and will be executed. However, with you dead, I will be the king."

"That's where you're wrong," Celice shot back. "As things stand now, Julia is the heir to the throne."

Harman laughed. "Oh, I forgot to mention that she was the leader of the conspirators! Or that's what the general population will be told. She will die as well."

Celice's blood began to boil, but he put a harness on his anger. "Harman, you are an absolute fool, you know that? If you had just behaved, you'd have lived a while longer. As it is, you've signed your own death warrant. Even if you win today, you will likely die. The commoners may not know Julia personally enough to reject your cock-and-bull story, but I know of many people who will reject it. Among those people, five men stand out above all the rest: King Faval of Verdane, King Aless of Agustria, King Sety of Silesia, King Shanan of Isaac, and King Leaf of New Thracia. The moment you release this story and usurp the throne, all five of those nations will declare war. Grandbell is not equipped to fight a five-front war. It barely managed a two-front war when my father was a knight. Those five men will rip apart the army, capture and execute you, and expose your alibi for what it really is–a big, fat, LIE!" He then drew Tyrfing from its scabbard.

"Ah, yes, the holy sword of the crusader Baldo," Harman said, narrowing his eyes. "However, it will not save you today. My army far outnumbers yours. You may be able to take out an entire battalion on your own, but you'll fall under more than that. I hope you've enjoyed your life, Your Majesty." He then backed up, to the front of his army.

Nanna rode up to Celice. "Do you think we'll get through this?"

"I don't know," Celice said. "I honestly don't know. We've faced larger armies than this, but that was with larger numbers ourselves." He then looked Nanna in the eyes and forced himself to smile. "I love you," he said, with a slight hint of defiance in his voice.

"And I love you," Nanna replied with the same air of defiance. They then faced their enemy and waited for the charge. However, it never happened. Instead, an uproar came from the rear of Harman's army.

"What in blazes is going on back there?" Harman bellowed. Celice was surprised that they were still in earshot of him.

"Sir!" a soldier called. "We're being attacked from the rear! Reinforcements suddenly came out of nowhere!"

"What kind of reinforcements?" Harman shouted. "I want numbers, too!"

"It's a battalion of dragon knights, sir!" the soldier replied.

This caught Harman, as well as Celice and Nanna, by surprise. "That's impossible! There's no way His Majesty would have gotten word to New Thracia so quickly for their Princess Altenna to show up with--"

"They're not New Thracian troops, sir! They seem to be mercenaries, and their leader is a man! He has long brown hair, and is carrying some sort of unusual lance!"

Celice and Nanna looked at each other. "It can't be who I think it is, can it?" Celice asked Nanna.

"I have no idea," Nanna replied. "However, this is our chance. They're in disarray due to the sneak attack from the rear. We should strike now."

Celice nodded. "I was thinking along those lines myself. All right, men, charge! Give them everything you've got!"

-11-

The fight was all over in about half an hour. Celice's troops had won. The sole survivor was Chief Councilor Harman himself, who had been taken into custody and brought before Celice. Meanwhile, the mysterious reinforcements circled overhead.

"I don't believe you," Celice said. "I think I know why you did this. And don't respond–I don't want to listen to you talk. You wanted me to marry your daughter, didn't you? You thought it would give you more power. But when I announced that I was in love with Nanna, you couldn't take it, so you staged a rebellion to gain more power. Now, you're nothing more than a traitor. Men, take him to the dungeon now!" The knights who held Harman took him back to the palace, where he would be incarcerated for the short remainder of his life.

Celice then looked up. "I wish they'd land. I want to talk to them."

As if on cue, one of the dragon knights landed. "Your Majesty, our leader requests an audience with you," he said.

"Let him speak to me," Celice said. "I was about to call him down myself."

"Yes, Your Majesty," the dragon knight replied and flew back up into the sky. A few moments later, a second dragon knight landed. However, this one had a much more commanding and regal bearing about him.

The leader of the knights dismounted from his dragon. "So we finally meet again," he said.

"Yes . . . Prince Arion," Celice replied.

"Please, Your Majesty, I'm no longer a prince," Arion replied. "The Kingdom of Thracia is dead, and there is no place there for a man like me. I am merely Commander Arion now."

"Very well," Celice said. "Why did you come to our aid? I'm the man who led the army that destroyed your kingdom."

"That is true," Arion responded. "However, I merely did the job I was asked to do. Also . . . I want to thank you. Because of you and King Leaf, the Thracian Peninsula has been united after decades of strife. It was not as my father had wished, but I'm not as blinded by pride as he was. At this point, I'm willing to accept the descendants of the crusader Noba ruling the peninsula.

"Furthermore, it's because of you that Altenna is alive and well and knows who her true family is. Altenna grew up believing she was my sister, and that is how I view her. If anything, I'm actually in your debt."

"I see," Celice said. "If that is the case, I would ask you to stay here, in Grandbell, and receive peerage."

"I'm afraid I cannot do that, Your Majesty," Arion answered. "You see, Altenna needs to have no idea where I am. She's too attached to me, and I cannot bring her happiness. She needs to move on. However, I do have another proposal. You grant me peerage, and I will serve Grandbell exclusively. However, we can operate in secrecy. No one needs know we exist. In the case of another war, we can launch surprise attacks like we did here."

"You know, that's a good idea," Celice remarked. "Let's do that. Also, Arion, you don't need to address me by my title outside of court–in fact, I'd prefer you didn't."

Arion nodded. "Understood."

"Tell me just one more thing, though," Celice said. "Who sent you?"

"I'm afraid I'm not at liberty to disclose that information," Arion said. "The person who asked us to do this job has sworn us to secrecy about it."

"I see." Celice then turned to head back to town. "Meet me at the palace later." He and his troops then rode off.

Arion walked into a nearby thicket, and waited. Eventually, someone else joined him. "Our mission is accomplished," he said.

"So I saw," Levin remarked. He then procured a bag of gold. "Here is your payment, as promised."

"Thank you." Arion accepted the gold. "Are you sure you don't want Celice knowing that you were the one who hired us?"

"Absolutely certain," Levin answered. "I don't want him relying on me for the rest of his life. He needs to walk on his own two feet." He then stared in the direction of Barhara. "And judging from what I've seen, he is on the right track."


	12. Chapter 12

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Fire Emblem, nor do I own the characters in Fire Emblem. I do, however, own any characters I create for the purpose of this story.

When Swords Cross

CHAPTER TWELVE

The dry Darna wind stung Celice's throat and made his eyes water as he walked through the streets of the city. Gripping his traveler's cloak tighter around him, he made his way to the center square.

Darna was a different place than it was two years ago, when Celice's army had seized it during the war. The city was a much livelier place now, and traders traveling between Grandbell, Isaac, and New Thracia made it a preferred stop. Because of this, Darna was quickly gaining a reputation as a popular trading hub. The fact that Darna was still under Grandbellian jurisdiction made this even more positive for Celice. However, now he preferred to travel the streets in anonymity. He had a specific mission to accomplish, and he felt he could accomplish it far more easily in secrecy.

Celice reached the center square and came to a stop. As he waited, he looked around him. Before him was Fort Darna, the city's namesake. It was at Fort Darna over a century ago that twelve dragons, in human forms, appeared before a rebel army fighting the evil Lopt Empire and granted them powers and weapons strong enough to turn the tide of the battle and destroy the empire and Emperor Galle XVII. These twelve warriors–Baldo of Chalphy, Hezul of Nodion, Odo of Isaac, Dain of Thracia, Noba of Lenster, Neir of Dozel, Ulir of Jungby, Blagi of Edda, Fala of Velthomer, Tordo of Freege, Sety of Silesia, and Heim of Barhara–became known as the Crusaders, and had set up the kingdoms and duchies that still existed. Most of Celice's abilities came from the crusader Baldo, including the ability to wield the holy sword Tyrfing, though he had Heim's blood running in his veins, as well.

"Odlab!" came a voice from behind Celice. "Odlab, is that you?"

Celice turned around and saw Arion, donning a similar traveler's cloak to Celice's, standing before him. "Niad! I never imagined I'd see you here!"

"Nor I you, Odlab," Arion replied. "What brings you here?"

"I'm on my way to New Thracia with my newest wares," Celice replied. "How about you, Niad?"

"I'm on my way back from Isaac, myself," Arion answered. "I made a healthy sum on my wares up there."

Celice looked around. He then spotted who he was looking for. He waved Nanna over. "There you are, Luzeh."

"Have you been waiting long, Odlab?" Nanna asked.

"Not at all, Luzeh," Celice replied. "You remember Niad, don't you?"

Nanna turned to Arion. "Of course. A pleasure to see you again, Niad."

"And a pleasure to see you as well, Luzeh," Arion responded.

"Where are you staying, if I may ask?" Celice asked.

"I'm at an inn down the street to our south," Arion replied. "Goes by the name of 'The Miracle Inn.'"

"Really? What a coincidence!" Nanna exclaimed. "That's where we're staying, too!"

"Really? Well, I don't know about you two, but I'm ready for a warm meal. What say we head over to the inn for some dinner?"

"Sure, I'm famished myself," Celice answered. "How about you, Luzeh?"

"Same here," Nanna replied.

"Well, then, let's go eat!" Celice said, and the three of them headed toward the inn.

-12-

Celice, Arion, and Nanna all sat at a table in the corner of the inn. A waitress came up to them, and the three placed their orders. Once the waitress left, Celice said, "So, did anyone find any leads?"

"I'm afraid not," Arion answered.

"Sorry," Nanna replied.

"Hm, well, I haven't had a whole lot of luck, myself," Celice said.

"Celice, you don't have to do this," Nanna said pleadingly.

"Nanna, I want to do this," Celice responded. "I just can't shake this feeling that she's alive, and if I don't try, I'll never forgive myself."

"And if she isn't in this town?" Arion asked.

"Darna isn't the only town in the Yied Desert," Celice answered. "Maybe she only made it to Melgen, or maybe she lost her bearings and ended up in Phinora. Look, if either of you doesn't want to aid me, you're more than welcome to leave."

"I swore an oath to you, Celice, and I intend to follow through on it," Arion replied.

"And she's my mother, so I'm not going anywhere as long as you think there's a chance of finding her," Nanna responded. "Besides, I hate being separated from you for extended periods of time."

"That makes two of us, Nanna," Celice said. "Well, I thank you both for your support. At any rate, it's getting dark out, so we should probably call it a day. After we eat, let's get some rest."

"Sounds like a plan," Arion said.

"Great, I'm tired," Nanna added.

-12-

The next day, Celice found himself strolling down a back alley when he heard some noises. He rounded a corner and found an older man being held up by two other men.

"Just hand it over, and we'll leave ya alone," one of the men said.

"I need this money to pay for food for my family," the old man said, his voice quivering. "Just let me be."

"Well, we need money, too, you know," the second mugger said. "Don't be so selfish, you old codger."

"Hey!" Celice shouted. "Let him go!"

The two muggers turned to Celice. "Beat it. This don't concern you."

"I'm making it concern me," Celice retorted. "Get out of here if you don't want to get hurt."

One of the muggers laughed. "And who's gonna stop us, kid? You?"

"Exactly," Celice replied. He lifted his cloak enough for the muggers to see his left hip and motioned to the hilt of his sword, which was resting in its scabbard. "Like I said. If you value your lives, you'll get out of my sight."

The muggers drew knives. "A sword don't scare us!"

Celice drew his sword. "It should, if you recognize it."

One of the muggers turned pale. "That's . . . that's . . ." He then turned to his partner. "Let's do what he says and get out of here!"

His partner turned to him. "Why are you chickening out all of a sudden?" He then turned to Celice and lunged, but in the blink of an eye, the mugger's stomach was impaled on Celice's sword. He pushed the mugger's body off and turned to his partner. "He's still alive, but he will die if he's not tended to immediately, so do that. I then expect you to turn yourselves in to the local authorities. And don't think I won't know if you don't do as I say. Do I make myself clear?"

The mugger nodded his head vigorously, grabbed his partner, and ran off. Celice then sheathed his sword and offered a hand to the older man, who had slumped to the ground. "Are you all right?"

The man took Celice's hand and used it to get back to his feet. "Thank you so much. Now we can eat for another month."

"What is it you do for a living?" Celice asked.

"I'm a physician," the man answered. "But with a combination of taxes and rogues like that, I haven't been able to bring much home."

_Damn! I knew I forgot a reform the councilors wouldn't let me enact! First thing I do when I return to Barhara is reduce taxes._ "Well, just be careful, all right?" Then, he had an idea. "Just how long have you been practicing?"

"About twenty-five years," the physician answered.

"All right, well, let me ask you something," Celice said. "I'm looking for a particular woman. She would have arrived in this town approximately fifteen years ago. She had long, blonde hair and blue eyes, would have been about half a foot shorter than me, and would have come from Lenster. She was likely wearing some kind of noble uniform, with armor only for her chest and shoulders. I was wondering if you might have seen her."

"Come to think of it, I do recall a woman like that showing up here," the physician replied. "About fifteen years ago, too. I was on the outskirts at the time, when I saw a woman who matched your description amble in from the desert. She had a really nasty gash on her left leg, and I remember being amazed that she could walk. I was able to help her, and stitched the wound shut and called a priest. He did what he could, but the damage to her leg was quite extensive. It wasn't done by any weapon I know of, that's for sure. As a result, we got the wound healed, but a scar was left behind, and her leg was messed up permanently. She could still get around, but needed a cane to do so. I know she took on a job somewhere near my clinic."

Celice's eyes lit up. "Thank you! That helps me a lot!" He then dug in his pocket and handed the physician a small sack of gold. "Here, take this as thanks."

"I can't accept that," the physician replied.

"Come now," Celice said. "Surely you wouldn't refuse a gift from the king of Grandbell." He dropped the sack of money in the astonished physician's hand and walked off.

-12-

Celice knocked on the door of the building the physician pointed out. He heard someone say "Come in," and entered.

Celice looked around. On his left was a desk, where a woman sat. Other than that, he appeared to be in an empty room. "May I help you?" the woman asked.

"Uh, yeah," Celice said. "My name is Odlab, and I'm looking for a specific person. She's got long blond hair down to her waist, and blue eyes. She's also about half a foot shorter than I am, and walks with a cane."

"Ah, you mean Sissy," the woman said. "Wait a moment, I'll get her." She got up and left, and came back a moment later with someone else behind her. Celice did a double take. He felt as if he were looking at an older Nanna. Just as he had heard, she wore her hair long, and walked with a cane. She was also roughly six inches shorter than he was, and was the spitting image of Nanna except for lines around her face undoubtedly brought on by age and stress. He lowered his hood, exposing his full head.

"Miss Sissy, this young man is here to see you," the woman said. "He says his name is Odlab."

Sissy nodded. "All right, thank you. I will talk with him in private." She led Celice into a nearby room and shut the door.

Celice looked around and was startled to see that this was a bedroom. Sissy sat down in a chair and motioned for Celice to sit on the bed. He complied. "I must apologize, ma'am, but my real name isn't Odlab. It's--"

"Celice Baldos Chalphy," Sissy replied. "It's been nearly two decades since last I saw you, but I know it's you."

"Then I was right," Celice said. "Your real name isn't Sissy. You're just using that name to conceal your true identity . . . Lachesis."

The woman sitting across from Celice nodded. "Guilty as charged. You're probably curious as to how I recognized you?"

"I guess," Celice replied.

"Your face looks very much like your father's," Lachesis replied. "Except your eyes. Aside from their color, they're the exact same as your mother's. Your eyes also haven't changed one bit since the day you were born."

"I hope you will forgive my asking, but what exactly happened?" Celice asked.

"You mean how did I end up here?" Lachesis asked in response. Celice nodded. "Well, it begins with the Battle of Barhara. I'd rather not go into too much detail on that, as it either causes me to cry or to break something."

"I understand," Celice replied. "I'm not too keen on listening to the story myself."

"Thank you. Anyway, I managed to escape with my life, and I took my husband's advice and fled toward Lenster. The reason I headed for Lenster is that I knew that my sister-in-law had family down there, and that is where she had taken Aless. When I reached Lenster, I was in no condition to look for my sister-in-law and my nephew, as I was heavy with child by that time.

"After Nanna was born, I attempted to search for Aless and his mother, but my searches were fruitless. I couldn't do much, though, as I had a newborn to attend to. Shortly, however, I was joined in the village by Sir Fin and Prince Leaf, who had been driven out of Lenster by the Grandbell military. Together, we raised Nanna and Prince Leaf. I acted as a surrogate mother for Prince Leaf, and Sir Fin acted as a surrogate father for both children.

"As time passed, however, I began to feel guilty. Here I was, fulfilling my maternal duties for Nanna, while Delmud was in Isaac and would likely grow up never remembering his mother. Five years after I initially arrived in Lenster, I made up my mind to travel to Isaac. I left Nanna in Sir Fin's care and left. Unfortunately, I had failed to realize just how treacherous the Yied Desert had become in those five years. The desert was literally swarming with Lopt priests, and they didn't take kindly to undocumented travelers. I was ganged upon by several dark mages, and though I managed to defeat them, I suffered a grave wound to my leg. I made it here, to Darna, where a physician and a priest patched me up. However, the dark magic was too strong to repair with healing staves and medical science, so I'm forced to walk with a cane for the rest of my life. And worst of all . . . instead of being a mother for at least one of my children, I was unable to be a mother for either . . ." Tears began to flow down Lachesis's face.

Without realizing what he was doing, Celice got off the bed and gave Lachesis a hug. He then broke away when he realized what he did, and said, "Oh, I'm sorry. You look so much like your daughter when you cry that I just acted reflexively."

"It's all right," Lachesis assured him. "In fact, that was very sweet of you. It's something either of your parents would have done. You're going to make some girl very happy some day."

"Well, that's what I came to talk to you about," Celice said. "Lachesis, I . . . I'm in love with your daughter. Not a moment passes where she doesn't enter my thoughts. When she's with me, I feel . . . complete. We've been through so much together, and we've come out of it all by each other's side. I want to take Nanna's hand in marriage."

"Oh," Lachesis said. She then looked past Celice, at the wall behind him. "I remember once talking to Nanna . . . I told her, one day, the son of Sigurd the Hero would ride into Lenster. I told her that, if he was anything like his father, he'd be worthy of her aid and even her friendship. I told her that when that day comes, ride out to meet him and help him in whatever way she can. I guess, in a way, she's acting on my advice." She then smiled warmly at Celice, and he felt himself blush. "If that means being by your side forever, then I have no objections at all. Besides, from what I've seen and heard, you're brave, just, kind-hearted, and a real charmer. And you're cute when you blush." This last remark made Celice turn even redder. "I can't imagine a more perfect husband for my lovely daughter."

Celice smiled, almost giddy with joy, and leaped off the bed, grasping Lachesis's hands. "Oh, thank you, thank you so much! You don't know how much this means to me!"

Lachesis could not help but laugh. "Seeing you like this lightens my heart. I should be thanking _you_."

Celice regained his composure, but did not suppress his grin. "Sorry for getting so worked up. I'm just thrilled is all." He then looked around. "So, what is this place?"

"We're affiliated with the local church and a clinic," Lachesis replied. "They send their sick and injured here, and we help care for them. I figured it's the least I could do after the way I made my way into this town. Well, I think I can leave it safely in Ellen's hands."

"What do you mean?" Celice asked, confused.

"Well, I'm returning to Grandbell with you, aren't I?" Lachesis replied.

"You don't need to," Celice answered.

"I want to, though," Lachesis said. "We haven't been getting many patients anyway, and I want to see Nanna again. I also want to go to my homeland to see my son and my nephew."

"Well, Nanna is in town with me," Celice said. "You don't have to wait until you reach Barhara to see her. As a matter of fact, I'll go get her."

-12-

Arion and Nanna waited at the designated spot. "He's late," Nanna said.

"Maybe he found something," Arion replied.

"Maybe," Nanna said. "He could also have gotten held up in some other fashion."

"I don't deny that that is possible," Arion responded. "Hey, there he is. Why's he running?"

Celice ran up to Arion and Nanna, breathing hard but with a big smile on his face. "I found her!" he exclaimed.

Nanna's eyes went wide with shock. "You _found_ her?"

"I found her!" Celice repeated. He then grabbed Nanna's hand. "Come on! Let's go!"

-12-

Lachesis waited patiently for Celice's return. When he did return it was with two people in tow. One was a man slightly taller than Celice, with long, brown hair. The other was a woman who was the spitting image of herself, only three inches taller with shorter hair. The moment these two women saw each other, their eyes widened.

"MOTHER!" Nanna shouted with joy as she threw herself into Lachesis's arms. "Oh, Mother, I've missed you so much!"

Lachesis's eyes clouded over with tears. "Oh, Nanna, my dear, sweet daughter . . ."

Celice and Arion looked at each other, nodded, and walked out of the room, shutting the door behind them.

Mother and daughter stayed in each other's arms for a moment, each shedding tears of joy. They then broke apart, and Nanna sat on the bed across from Lachesis. "Oh, Nanna, you've grown so much . . . and just look at you! You're so beautiful! I'm sure you had your pick of any guy you wanted!"

Nanna blushed slightly. "Perhaps, if I'd tried."

"Well, I'm more than happy with the one you picked," Lachesis said. "He's very nice, and handsome, too."

"That's only part of it, Mother," Nanna said. "He's an absolute sweetheart! We were in Agustria a while back, and I got injured and was unconscious for five days. He waited outside my room the entire time. He even ate and slept there. He told me he wanted to be the first person I saw when I woke up."

Lachesis smiled. "Well, he certainly takes after his father, then. I never knew Sigurd was such a romantic until he met Deirdre. Every time I saw them together, they seemed to be in a state of bliss. Sigurd went out of his way to do all sorts of things for his wife. They were so perfect for each other.

"Anyway, why were you in Grandbell? I'd have expected you to go to Agustria with Delmud and Aless."

"Well, I did originally," Nanna replied, "but after about a year, I convinced Aless to let me serve as the Agustrian ambassador to Grandbell."

"That was just a ruse to get closer to Celice, wasn't it?" Lachesis remarked.

Nanna blushed. "Yeah, it was. I've had feelings for Celice ever since he saved my life in northern Thracia, though I didn't realize that that was what my feelings were until the war's end."

"Wait, what's this?" Lachesis asked. "He saved your life?"

Nanna nodded. "Twice. The first time, we were defending Lenster from Blume's forces, and I was wounded. Celice scooped me up, climbed atop his horse, and rode to Conote at top speed. The second time, I also saved his life by jumping in the way of a sneak attack aimed at him. He ran at full speed toward the nearest town. That's also when he first told me he loved me."

"In that second instance, it sounds like you broke even," Lachesis said. "You saved his life, and he returned the favor."

"That's not the only time I saved his life, either," Nanna replied. "In Velthomer, during the war, Celice emerged victorious from a battle with Manfloy, but collapsed, victim to some magic spell I'd never seen before. I ran over and kept a constant stream of healing magic flowing into his body to keep him alive until someone who could purge the magic came along."

Lachesis's gaze suddenly dropped to the ground. "Nanna, I . . . I want to apologize to you. I up and disappeared when you were still a child, and never returned. I couldn't be a mother to you."

"Mother, don't beat yourself up over that," Nanna replied. "I have no hard feelings against you. You did what was expected of you as a mother. If anything, it was selfish of me to want you all to myself when I had a brother who grew up never knowing his mother." She then took Lachesis's hands. "But it's time for you to fix that. We'll make sure you get to Nodion to see your son again."

-12-

While Nanna and Lachesis caught up on old times, Celice and Arion held a discussion of their own in an adjacent bedroom.

"I never did learn," Arion said, "how did you and Nanna meet?"

"Well, Nanna grew up with Prince Leaf and his caretaker, Fin, in northern Thracia. She was part of the army that retook Lenster from the Empire. When Alster's forces set out to retake Lenster, my army rushed to their aid. That's when I met Nanna," Celice said.

"Was it love at first sight, or was this one of those relationships that developed over time?" Arion asked.

"Well, I had noticed soon after meeting her that she was indeed a beautiful young woman, but it took some time for romantic feelings to develop," Celice replied. "I'm not even entirely sure when I truly fell for Nanna, as I didn't realize it until a year after the war ended, after she had asked me to dance with her at a ball in the royal palace."

"Also, if you'll forgive me for asking you another question," Arion began, "but what is in the bag you've been carrying around? You've been treating it very gingerly."

Celice handed the bag to Arion. "Here, take a look for yourself."

Arion accepted the bag and looked inside. When he saw the tiara within, he let out a low whistle. "This is a real work of art," he said. "I don't think I know a girl alive who wouldn't love this tiara."

"Exactly," Celice said. "I'm giving that tiara to Nanna right before I propose to her."

"So you're going to sweep her off her feet and drop the bombshell while her guard is down," Arion commented. "This must be the famous Chalphy strategic mind at work."

Celice laughed. "I'd like to think tactics have practical uses outside of war, but that isn't exactly what I had in mind."

Arion then handed the bag back to Celice. "Well, take care of that–and her, as well."

"Indeed I will," Celice said. A few moments later, Nanna and Lachesis emerged from the room in which they had been talking. Celice got up and said, "Nanna, if I could talk to you in private for a moment?"

"Sure," Nanna said, and they walked into the room where Celice and Arion had been talking. Arion got up and left the room, closing the door behind him. "So, what do you want to talk about? Or was that just an excuse to do something else, you naughty boy?"

Celice turned red. "No, I, uh, really meant that I want to talk to you." He regained his composure and handed her the bag with the tiara. "Here, this is for you."

Nanna, surprised, took the bag and opened it. When she saw the contents, she gasped, eyes wide as saucers. "Oh my god, oh my god! This tiara . . . it's so gorgeous! And this is for me?"

Celice nodded, but was cut off as Nanna tackled him and pinned him to the bed. She then grabbed his collar and kissed him forcefully, just like she had back in Agustria. This time, however, Celice relaxed, and when she pulled back, he was not blushing. Instead, he commented, "You like it that much, huh?" He sat up and felt Nanna hug him tightly.

"Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou!" Nanna exclaimed. "I love it! This is the best gift I've ever gotten!"

"I can do one better," Celice replied.

Nanna pulled away. "And what would that be?"

Celice took Nanna's hands. "You're looking at it right now. It's me. I want to take you as my wife." Much to Celice's surprise, however, Nanna began to cry. _Uh-oh. Perhaps I overdid it?_ "Why are you crying?"

"Because . . . because . . ." Nanna began. She then threw herself on Celice again. "Because this is the happiest day of my life! I get my mother back, get the most beautiful piece of jewelry ever made, and the man who means more to me than anything in the world has just proposed to me!"

"Does this mean you accept?" Celice asked.

"Yes, Celice!" Nanna exclaimed. "Yes, I accept!"

Celice smiled. He then pushed Nanna back slightly and took her face in his hands. Very gingerly, he wiped the tears from Nanna's face, then kissed her just as gently. When they broke apart, however, they did not move. Instead, Nanna nestled herself against Celice's chest.

"I can't wait to tell my mother the good news," Nanna said softly.

"Not yet, though, please," Celice said in response. "I want to sit here like this for a while longer."

"You read my mind," Nanna replied.


	13. Epilogue

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Fire Emblem, nor do I own the characters in Fire Emblem. I do, however, own any characters I create for the purpose of this story.

When Swords Cross

EPILOGUE

_One year later . . ._

As soon as the first ray of sunlight filtered into the royal bedchamber, Celice's eyes snapped open and he all but leaped out of bed. Today was the big day. Somehow, he had managed to get to sleep the night before, despite his nervousness. Now, however, he was in serious business mode. He strode over to his wardrobe and pulled from it the outfit he had picked out the night before–the same dress uniform that he had worn to the ball over a year ago, only with a full, sweeping gold cape. Then, a thought came to him–he should eat before getting changed, lest he stain his outfit. With that, he sprinted down to the kitchens.

-E-

Several hours later, Celice was standing in a side room in the cathedral. He was trying to make some last-minute adjustments to his appearance. He did not want so much as a single hair out of line on this day.

"Your Majesty, please calm down," Oifaye said. "The ceremony will not be very long."

"I know, Oifaye, but I still want to look my best," Celice said.

"If you're too tense, you'll be more likely to make a mistake," Arthur chimed in.

"Yes, I'd like to see how you fare in my shoes, Arthur," Celice replied. "So, uh, how do I look?"

"Your Majesty, you've asked a thousand times," Johan replied. "You look fine. Really. Seriously. You don't need to impress anyone out there."

-E-

In another side room, Nanna stood getting ready, with stylists adding the finishing touches to her outfit.

"How do I look?" Nanna asked.

"Nanna, you've asked that at least a dozen times," Julia replied. "Really, I doubt my brother is this uptight."

"I just want to look perfect," Nanna said.

"Nanna, you look wonderful," Tinny said.

"That's right," Leen added. "When you go out there, you are going to knock everyone off their feet, especially the groom."

-E-

Celice stood before the altar, doing everything he could to not faint from nervousness. When the music began, he felt his adrenaline spike. He had not felt this nervous even before he engaged Alvis in battle. As he watched, the bride slowly emerged from the doorway.

The normally beautiful princess looked absolutely breathtaking in her wedding gown. She wore a strapless, all-white silk gown that flowed outward from her hips. The body of the gown had a different pattern from the rest of the gown, making it look somewhat like a corset. The gown fit her perfectly, accentuating her figure. She wore a veil that was made of the same white silk as her gown, and it seemed to cascade from her head like a waterfall. Around her forehead, securing the veil in place, was the tiara Celice had bought for her. She held in her hands a bouquet of beautiful flowers. As she approached the altar, it took Celice every ounce of his strength not to let his jaw drop. Then, he felt someone prodding him in his back.

"Your Majesty," Oifaye whispered out of the corner of his mouth. "You've stopped breathing." Celice inhaled very deeply, stunned by the vision of loveliness that walked down the aisle. She finally stopped by Celice's side and waited as the music ended. He then cleared his throat.

"Before we begin the service, I would like to address the people here to witness this happy day. There are many people in attendance who helped me get to where I am today, and for this, they deserve my thanks.

"Oifaye, Shanan, you took care of me for most of my life. You kept me well-fed, healthy, and fit. Words cannot express my gratitude to you.

"Skasaha, Lakche, Lana, Lester, and Delmud, you were all like the siblings I never had. Thank you for sticking by my side.

"Julia, my dear sister, without you, I would have succumbed to the pressures of my office. Thank you for always being there for me.

"Likewise, I'd like to thank the various dukes–Oifaye of Chalphy, Lester of Jungby, Arthur of Velthomer, Corple of Edda, Johan of Dozel, and Tinny of Freege. You've supported me through thick and thin, and I am especially grateful for your support in the brief civil war we had last year with the rogue councilors.

"Leaf, Fin, you both looked out for the woman by my side today. Thank you for this.

"King Faval, King Aless, King Sety, King Shanan, and King Leaf. Thank you for being great allies and even greater friends.

"Lachesis, it's because of you and your late husband, Beowulf, that Nanna is here in the first place. Thank you for bringing the love of my life into being.

"I'd also like to thank Levin, wherever he is. He was the inspiration of many a winning strategy during the war, and he also looked out for my well-being.

"And lastly, though they aren't here, I want to thank my parents, Sigurd and Deirdre. Without them, I wouldn't be here. And in that last battle . . . Father had ordered Shanan and Oifaye to take me to Isaac and away from him. I can't imagine the amount of pain that put him through, knowing that he might never see me again. And it was all for my sake. So the two of them have my eternal gratitude and my undying love." His speech finished, Celice turned to the altar and the bishop behind it.

"Dearly beloved," Bishop Palmark began, "We are here to witness a union of a man and a woman. However, this is no ordinary marriage, for we are talking about the king of Grandbell and the woman that will become his queen." He paused. "If anybody has any objections, speak now or forever hold your peace." Another pause. Silence. "Very well, we will now begin the vows." Celice and Nanna turned toward each other.

"I, Celice Baldos Chalphy, do take thee, Nanna of Nodion, as my loving wedded wife, to have and to hold, for rich or for poor, in sickness and in health, until death do us part." He carefully slipped the ring on Nanna's finger. Now it was Nanna's turn.

"I, Nanna of Nodion, do take thee, Celice Baldos Chalphy, as my loving wedded husband, to have and to hold, for rich or for poor, in sickness and in health, until death do us part." She slipped the ring on Celice's finger.

Bishop Palmark then looked at the bride and groom. "Now, we shall seal this marriage with a kiss." Celice took a step closer to Nanna, lifted back the veil, placed a hand on Nanna's cheek, and kissed her. A moment later, they broke apart and faced the congregation.

"By the power vested in me by the gods, I now present to you, the congregation, King and Queen Celice Baldos Chalphy." The congregation stood up and applauded the newly-married couple, and Celice and Nanna led the procession out of the cathedral.

Along the way, though, Celice reached out and scooped his new wife into his arms. Nanna let out an "Eek!" in surprise, but quickly relaxed. She nestled herself against Celice's chest and wrapped her arms around her husband's neck.

The pair passed through the large oak doors and out into the sunlight. However, Celice came to a complete stop. There, only twenty feet away, just like that day on the beach, stood Celice's parents. Sigurd was standing tall and proud, with a great smile on his face as his eyes rested on his son, and next to him, his arm wrapped around her, with tears of joy streaming down her face, was Deirdre. She wore a smile similar to Sigurd's, and Celice could see that her eyes were filled with love.

Nanna looked up at Celice's face, concerned. "Is something wrong, Celice?"

Celice looked down, into Nanna's big, blue eyes, and smiled warmly. "Not at all. Everything is perfect."


End file.
